Shamus Award X Ingrid

Group 1 winning trainer Kerry Parker has been surrounded by horses for as long as he can remember. A native of the South Coast of NSW, Kerry’s first exposure to horses came with the trail riding business part owned by his father.

By his early teens, Kerry knew that his future lay with horses and the following years were spent learning the trade as a strapper and track rider under trainers such as Errol Amos at Canterbury, Sid Barker at Nowra and David Balfour in Adelaide. While Kerry absorbed valuable lessons from each of these masters, the seminal point of his career was unquestionably the five years he spent with the high profile and well respected Randwick trainer Les Bridge. During his stint at Sir Dapper Lodge, Kerry rode and tended to a long string of top class thoroughbreds including Drawn, Kensei, Row Of Waves and Just Blooming.

After the best part of a decade working in and around stables, Kerry branched out and secured a trainers licence in 1991, establishing his own stables at Kembla Grange where, to this day, his horses enjoy the peace and serenity of the picturesque provincial course.

Kerry’s first major success came early in his career when he trained the winner of the 1994 edition of the Group 2 AJC St Leger Stakes, Gold Sovereign. That particular galloper would also provide Kerry with his first runner in the Melbourne Cup. Another career highlight came when gutsy stayer Don Raphael scored a black type treble in the spring of 2004, comprising the Tattersals Plate (Listed), Colin Stephen Quality Hcp (G3) and Saab Quality Handicap (G2), before taking his place in The Melbourne Cup field, Kerry’s second starter in the Australia’s iconic race.

Amongst other reputable accolades, Kerry has twice reached the pinnacle of racing: In 2018 he guided Dark Dream from a maiden win at Moruya to Group 1 success (Queensland Derby) in a single preparation, and then three years later he transformed Think It Over from a class 1 tried horse to a multiple Group 1 winner.