Background
He was born in Edinburgh but moved to Manchester as a small child in the mid-1970s, and grew up as a Hearts supporter.
He was born in Edinburgh but moved to Manchester as a small child in the mid-1970s, and grew up as a Hearts supporter.
However, a late equaliser by United"s Mark Hughes forced a replay, which the Latics lost 4–1 at Maine Road. They were relegated on the final day of the season after only managing a 1–1 draw with Norwich City. He played a total of 112 league games for the Latics, scoring 18 goals.
He was then transferred to Aberdeen for £1M on 27 September 1995, and he remains the only player that a Scottish club outside the Old Firm has spent £1 million on.
As such Bernard has been associated with the misguided spending of Aberdeen in the 1990s, when relatively large amounts were spent without much success. Bernard was released by Aberdeen in 2001 after six seasons, 99 league games and six goals.
His playing career finished in 2006 after a year-long spell in Ireland with Drogheda United. He was capped twice by the Scottish national team at senior level, with both of his appearances coming in 1995, following 16 under 21 and two "B" caps earlier in the decade.