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EXHIBIT 23.1 CONSENT OF KPMG LLP
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INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS' CONSENT
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The Board of Directors
OceanFirst Financial Corp.
We consent to incorporation by reference in the registration statement on Form
S-8, pertaining to the OceanFirst Financial Corp. 2000 Stock Option Plan, of
OceanFirst Financial Corp. of our report dated January 20, 2000, relating to the
consolidated statements of financial condition of OceanFirst Financial Corp. and
subsidiary as of December 31, 1999 and 1998 and the related consolidated
statements of income, changes in stockholders' equity, and cash flows for each
of the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 1999, which report
appears in the December 31, 1999 annual report on Form 10-K of OceanFirst
Financial Corp.
/s/ KPMG LLP
Short Hills, New Jersey
July 19, 2000
