The Snakepit Awaits as St Bernard’s Keep Their Season Alive 

After the long overdue win against Old Caulfield last week, St Bernard’s were set to travel for the last time this season and play top of the ladder Uni Blues. 

It was a high-pressure contest from the opening bounce, with St Bernard's taking the time to find its rhythm and work out how to move the ball efficiently against a highly drilled Uni Blues cohort. Once St Bernard’s settled into the contest, they began to take control however, it was a frustrating first term with no goals scored for either side. Both teams had promising passages of play but the tightly contested ball made forward fifty entries difficult to capitalise on. 

For the majority of the opening three quarters, St Bernard’s dominated territory, repeatedly finding inside fifties and forcing Blues to defend. The ability St. Bernard’s had to win the ball out of the middle and push forward was impressive and slowly the score board began to reflect their efforts. 

The midfield was led by Luke Said who produced a dominant performance around the stoppages. Luke Said repeatedly broke packs, won contested possessions and finished the day with a whopping 13 clearances. 

Charlie Vague was another major contributor, finding plenty of the football and finishing with 31 disposals, while continuing to provide an important link across the ground.

Similarly to last week, St Bernard’s continued to make the most of turnovers. The team was able to pressure the opposition into mistakes. Every turnover was met with intent, with St Bernard’s quick to transition from defence into attack and make the Blues pay. 

At the other end of the ground, the backline produced another enormous performance. 

Zac Overman was able to nullify Stewart’s influence, ensuring one of the Blues’ key attacking weapons struggled to make an impact. Zac worked alongside Tom Zafiropoulos  and the two together meant they were able to interrupt Uni Blues usual game style. 

Nick Conlan also produced a similarly impressive shutdown job on Marty Gleeson, removing his ability to impact the game. 

However, it was Ben Overman that set the tone from the very first bounce. He brought enormous intensity, covering ground all afternoon, taking intercept marks and using the football efficiently. 

Entering the final term, the momentum shifted with University Blues throwing everything at St. Bernard’s and slotting two quick goals in the opening 5 minutes. The Blues generated 11 more inside fifties in the final quarter, putting enormous pressure on the St Bernard’s defence but the team refused to break.

Contest after contest, the boys held their ground. Every clearance, spoil, intercept and defensive effort became more important as the clock ticked down and when the final siren sounded, the scoreboard told the story. 

St Bernard’s had done it, a 12-point victory over the ladder leaders.In true recent season fashion, it once again comes down to the final two weeks. 

Next Saturday, St Bernard’s return home to the Snakepit to face Old Brighton, a side that has historically been a difficult opponent and will provide another enormous challenge. After what this group has produced over the past month, anything is possible and this team deserve to be playing A grade football. 

Now, the boys need to do it again and they need the St.Bernard’s faithful behind them. 

Fill the hill, pack the pit and bring the energy because this season isn’t finished yet.

SCORES
Uni Blues 0.2 2, 2.2 14, 3.3 21, 5.7 37

St Bernards 0.2 2, 2.7 19, 6.10 46, 6.13 49

BEST
Uni Blues Jack C O’Sullivan, Geordie LaCava, Joe Furphy, James Curran, James Stewart, Nicholas Conway

St Bernards Ben Overman, Charlie Vague, Thomas Zafiropoulos, Nicholas Conlan, Luke Said, Finn Shannon

GOALS

Uni Blues J. Stewart 2, C.Cotter, J.Goddard, S.Grimley

St Bernards D. Gilham 2, F. Shannon 2, M. Watson 2

Written by Hannah Juricskay 

Photos by @capturedbybrigette