Peter Bevilacqua and Barry Beitzel only managed three Carlton senior appearances between them – and yet the two recently-deceased former players of vastly different backgrounds, gave much to society across the seven decades since they last laced their footy boots.

Peter Bevilacqua, who passed away on March 3 at the age of 91, managed just one senior appearance for Carlton – the victorious 18th round match of 1953 against North Melbourne at Arden Street. In truth the 20 year-old 20th man didn’t even get four quarters, only emerging from the dugout in the final term when George Stafford hobbled off with a sprained ankle.

But Peter’s unique place in League football history is assured, as the VFL/AFL’s only senior footballer born in Italy.

Back in 2006, in the lead-up to the naming of the VFL/AFL Italian Team of the century, this reporter set about identifying League footballers of Italian origin who had represented their clubs at senior level since the formation of the VFL in 1897.

Working from the Main-Holmesby tome Encyclopedia of League Footballers, more than 100 “potentials” whose surnames ended with a vowel were identified – amongst them one Peter Bevilacqua.

Not long after, Peter was tracked down to Howrah in Tasmania’s south-east – and when asked if he in fact was of Italian background, he made the following revelation.

“I always thought I was the first and only Italian-born League footballer . . . in fact I’ve suspected it for some time,” Peter said. “I’ve often mentioned it as a trivia question. ‘Who is the only Italian born VFL, VFA and senior soccer player?’. People haven’t got the foggiest.”

Pietro Paolo Bevilacqua was born at San Marco in Lamis, in the province of Foggia, on the south-eastern side of Italy flanking the Adriatic Sea. He was so named because his birthday fell on the feast day of St Peter and St Paul - June 29, 1933. Curiously, Peter’s date of birth was registered with the local municipality two days later on July 1 and is the date which has appeared on all his official papers in the seven decades since.

In November 1935, having been driven by an inherent responsibility to fend for his family, Peter’s father Raffaele bid farewell to him, Peter’s mother Carolina and his three brothers Anthony, Michael and Joe, and boarded the Melbourne-bound passenger ship Viminale. By 1938, Raffaele had raised enough money to arrange for the passage to Australia of his wife and four sons – and on Christmas Day, 1938, Carolina, Anthony, Michael, Joe and Peter bade farewell to San Marco in Lamis and boarded the P & O liner, Oronsay.

Peter again takes up the story; “I remember leaving home with my mother and my brothers and boarding a minibus for the drive through the night to Naples,” he said.

“I remember a bit about the voyage. I befriended an English couple and by the time I got here I was speaking a reasonable amount of English. I also remember Christmas day with all the presents going out to the children, which was unexpected to say the least. The ship staff gave me a fire engine, which ended up over the side and they had to stop me jumping in after it.”

The Bevilacquas eventually settled in Carlton during which time links were forged with the Catoggios - and Peter’s lifelong affinity with the old dark Navy Blues was assured.

In 1952, on completing his Military Service at Puckapunyal, Peter took up a teaching course after struggling with his medical studies. Then, towards the end of the year, he realised a childhood dream, accepting an invitation to train with the Carlton Football Club.

“I was always a Carlton supporter and memories of Carlton always come flooding back,” Peter said.

“As kids, me and a few mates used to go to watch Carlton play every week. In the outer there used to be a double gate on the boundary line at the north-east corner of the ground where a policeman used to sit on a horse. We’d open the gate for him to ride onto the ground at quarter time, three quarter time and at the end of the game.

“At three-quarter time we’d follow the horse out and hear Perc Bentley address the Carlton players because the cop knew that when the huddle broke up we’d race off and open the gate for him.

“I was there for ‘The Bloodbath’ Grand Final of ’45 between Carlton and South Melbourne at Princes Park. The crowd tore down 100 metres of fence to get in that day because the gates were locked. Back then, on the southern side of the ground, there was a stand and it had rafters, so on Grand Final day me and a few mates literally hung from the rafters and had a bird’s eye of view. I can still see the ‘ray of sunshine’ that took Ken Hands out and I remember seeing was one of my heroes Jimmy Mooring, the blond bombshell Ron Savage and Bert Deacon playing. Deacon was fabulous as was proven when he won the Brownlow Medal in 1947.

“When I joined Carlton, the club was first class compared with anywhere else . . . back then it was a real community involving the spectators, the players and the parents.”

Peter’s emergence as a Carlton footballer was recorded by The Herald in February 1953, which carried a photograph of the 20 year-old, sporting his Uni Blues guernsey, signing autographs for a couple of local Carlton kids. The caption read; “Carlton recruit Peter Bevilacqua, a rover from the University Blues, caught the interest of these youngsters as they watch him write out his difficult name in their autograph books . . . ”. Sporting the No.5 dark navy blue jumper, Peter turned out for the Carlton reserve grade team through season ’53. He strung together a series of creditable performances and after nine rounds was on the verge of senior selection.

“I then played in a reserve grade match against Geelong and with 90 seconds to go, rolled an ankle,” Peter recalled.

“The next week I tried to disguise the injury by strapping it up and training through, but ‘Mick’ Price, the reserves coach, was awake to it and I wasn’t considered for a call-up. In those days you were notified in writing if you were selected, but there was a note placed in my letterbox the following Friday morning saying I was unfit for selection. It took me a few more games in the reserves before I finally broke through to the seniors.”

That came in the last week of August when the name “Bevilacqua” was pencilled into Carlton’s senior team sheet for the Round 18 match against North Melbourne at the old Arden Street ground. He wore the No.39 on his back that Saturday afternoon – the same number another Carlton footballer of Italian origin, Alex Cincotta, currently wears.

To read more of Peter’s recollections of that precious game, and his incredible life story in greater detail, click here.  

Peter’s career pathway in teaching eventually took him to Tasmania where he remained until the end. News of Peter’s passing was conveyed by Brendon Gale, the former Richmond senior footballer and Chief Executive Officer, now the inaugural CEO of the Tasmania Football Club - for Peter was Brendon’s economics Teacher and First XVIII football coach at St Virgil’s College in Hobart.

Gale, who with the late Ron Barassi, Kevin Bartlett, the late Frank Costa and Kevin Sheedy selected the Italian Team of the Century, recalled: “Peter was acknowledged by Ron for his unique place in history at the Italian Team of the Century Dinner at Crown. He was so proud”.

Addio Pietro – a devoted husband of Christine, dearly loved father and father-in-law of Robyn, David (dec) and Patrice, Simon and Michelle, Timothy and Justine; and grandfather of six.

Barry Beitzel, a two-game Carlton wingman across two seasons in the 1950s, and a cousin of the former VFL field umpire and football broadcaster the late Harry Beitzel, passed away on February 26 at the age of 90.

Recruited to the club from Sale (via Morwell and Maffra) in Gippsland, Barry won his first senior call-up in late 1955 - the year he took out the Jack Best Memorial Trophy for the Blues’ reserve grade Best & Fairest.

On the eve of his maiden senior appearance, the 17th round match with South Melbourne at the Lakeside Oval, Barry received a telegram from Harry, then officiating as one of the competition’s men in white, which read: “Congratulations and best wishes on the big occasion. Concentrate on the ball always and you will topple the best”.

Wearing the No.21 of the club’s games record holder Craig Bradley (and now Lucas Camporeale), Barry was named on a wing for the South match, in a midfield which included John Chick and Leon Berner, and again alongside Chick and Laurie Kerr for the following weekend’s Round 18 match against Geelong at Princes Park. The matches resulted in Carlton victories to the tune of 31 points and six points respectively.

As fate would have it, the Round 18 final home and away fixture would double as the last senior appearance for Beitzel, his teammates John Brown and Noel ‘Nobby’ O’Brien, and Senior Coach Perc Bentley, who mentored the Carlton Premiership teams of 1945 and ’47.

Barry was the Detective Sergeant leading the Wangaratta CIB, retiring in 1989 after a distinguished 32-year career with the Victorian Police Force. Barry was well respected in his community and equally so by his loving family.

Barry Emson Beitzel died peacefully in Wangaratta on February 26. He is survived by his wife Marianne, five children, 13 grandchildren (two deceased) and 15 great grandchildren.

He always maintained his strong allegiance to the Old Dark Navy Blues.