Bernie's Bulletin

2026 Event Calendar

2026 will see most of our alumni reunions occur on the same night.

Lock in Friday, 27 November, where the College will host all 1 to 50 year reunion cohorts in one big extravaganza in the brand-new Tobin Building cafeteria and the adjoining spectacular Piazza. All from the classes of 2025, 2021, 2016, 2011, 2006, 2001, 1996, 1991, 1986, 1981 & 1976 are invited for one big reunion party! Tours will be available to view our new facilities with complimentary beverages and food supplied. 

We had a great turnout for our Golden Years Reunion earlier this year, and we're pleased to announce we will be holding it again in 2026. All old boys from the classes of 1975 and earlier are welcome to attend this fantastic event on Friday, 21 August.

Invites will be sent directly as we approach the event dates.

This week we're shining the spotlight on an AFL legend and steadfast member of our community - Simon Madden.

Simon attended St Bernard’s College from 1970 until 1975, and was College Captain in his final year while also ably representing the school in sport. His talent for footy was quickly spotted by the Essendon Bombers, and he debuted for them in Round 17, 1974, when he was still a Year 11 student!

Simon went on to play 378 senior matches for Essendon and is considered one of the greatest ruckmen to play the game, and certainly the most durable. In addition to playing in the ruck, he was highly capable and dangerous in front of goal. Simon was a key member of the Essendon premiership side that went back-to-back in 1984-85 - and he stood up in the big games, winning the Norm Smith Medal for best on ground in the 1985 Grand Final. Simon and his brother Justin (himself a top-notch ruck for Essendon and Carlton) are the only sets of brothers to both play 300 games of league football.

Captain of Essendon in 1980-81, Simon's leadership skills have served him well off the field. He was president of the AFL Players Association from 1985 to 1989, was the Board Director at Essendon from 2014 to 2022, and spent 15 years in education, where he was a teacher and vice principal. Today he runs his own consulting firm, providing insights drawn from his varied experience, driving cultural change and improving performance for all kinds of businesses.

Closer to home, Simon remains heavily involved with St Bernard's. He was coach of St Bernard’s Old Collegians Football Club from 2005 to 2008, and is part of the College's Quays Project taskforce in an ambassadorial role, helping raise significant funds from our alumni for our latest exciting development. A natural public speaker, he is generous with his time and wisdom, and we've been lucky to have him host events from business lunches to the Foundation's Gala Dinner earlier this year.

As fitting recognition for his contributions both on and off the field, Simon is a member of both the AFL and St Bernard’s Hall of Fame.

If you know any old collegians who have been successful lately, let us know at development@sbc.vic.edu.au - we'd love to celebrate them!

Our first event of the year is brand-new, and sure to book up quickly!

Join us at Scotchmans Hill Winery on the beautiful Bellarine Peninsula for a day of fine food and wine. The day will begin with an exclusive Barrell Hall Tour and Tasting personally guided by the wine makers - a rare opportunity as this tour is not available to the general public. We follow with a two-course lunch with premium wines included at Scotchmans Restaurant (beer and non-alcoholic drinks can be purchased separately).

Taking place on Saturday 21 February 2026, the tour begins at 12:30 pm, followed by lunch at 2 pm and the event concluding at 4:30 pm. Partners are more than welcome to attend this event - in fact, why not make a weekend of it and enjoy all that the Bellarine has to offer? The winery is just a few minutes away from Portarlington, and close to St Leonards, Queenscliff and Drysdale.

Tickets are $165 per person and can be booked at this link: https://www.trybooking.com/DHBZM. Spots are limited for this exclusive event, so don't wait - book now! As always, any inquires can be directed to development@sbc.vic.edu.au.

We kindly thank old collegian and Scotchmans Hill Director Peter Reilly (and his fantastic team) for making this event possible.

The SBOCA Bowls Day is back for 2026 and will be held on Sunday 15 March!

Get your team of 3 together or come as a pair or individual, and you'll have the chance to win cash from a huge prize pool! Whether you want to bowl for glory or simply kick back in the summer sun, this is the day for you. The play will be in 2 Bowls Triples format, with teams of 3.

The event will be held at Aberfeldie Community Bowls Club, and lunch and afternoon tea will be provided with drinks available to purchase.

We invite all from the St Bernard's family - Old Collegians, current students, staff, family members and friends - to participate. Bookings are $50 per person or $150 per team and can be made at this link: https://www.trybooking.com/DHZSV. 

With VCE exams over and a new cohort freshly graduated, it’s time to say hello to the class of 2025!

On behalf of the St Bernard’s Old Collegians Association (SBOCA): congratulations on finishing your schooling, and we’re very excited to welcome you all to our old collegians community. 

SBOCA is here to help you as you transition out of school and beyond – our mission is to provide opportunities, support, and a welcoming community for all past St Bernard’s students. We run a number of exciting annual events, as well as our reunion program, and provide financial assistance such as the Global Gateway Grant for overseas study, and the Leadership in Community Grant to assist volunteer work.

This newsletter is one of our key means of communication, and will keep you informed on our amazing alumni events and other important community happenings.

You may have also received a link to sign up to Alumnly, our networking platform for old collegians. Among the many things you can do with Alumnly include accessing photos from events, searching by industry to connect with fellow old collegians, seek career advice, and view job and study opportunities posted by our community. If you'd like to join you can do so here: https://sbc.alumnly.com/alumnilogin

We wish you all the best, and remember, once a Bernard’s boy, always a Bernard’s boy.

With Australia up 2-0 in The Ashes and sending 'Bazball' packing, we thought we'd look back to St Bernard's own success in cricket. 

Below is a photo of the Under 15's team that won St Bernard's first ACC Cricket Premiership way back in 1951! Wearing the 'baggy blue' rather than the baggy green, these boys did the school proud. 

Also pictured below is an original SBC cricket cap from that era, looked after by our archivists through the years!

Back row: Brian Morley, Kevin Beardsley, Neil Brown, John Eddy, Leo Danaher, Kevin Morley

Front row: John Howe, Peter Rocke, John Griffiths, Ches Baragawanath, Frank Tenni, Ray Lalor, *Jim Ashford

As this will be our last Bernies 2 Minute Friday for 2025, we would like to wish you and all our community a very Merry Christmas and a happy and safe New Year. We hope your holidays are filled with peace, joy and community spirit, as we all look forward to a break and time with loved ones.

We'll see you in 2026!

Honouring our esteemed old collegians is deeply important to the College. If you wish to submit Vale notices for inclusion in The Strand magazine, please send them via email to development@sbc.vic.edu.au. Your contributions allow us to respectfully remember and celebrate the remarkable individuals who have been part of our community and have sadly passed away since our last publication.

The December Edition of the Strand has been sent to print, any Vale notices submitted from now on will be acknowledged in the next edition of the Strand in Term 2 of 2026.

We greatly appreciate your support in helping us honour their memories.