Family inspires Kerr’s journey

Jayden Kerr has spent almost a quarter of his life at Morphettville, now the 22-year-old has put down the boxing gloves to jump into the saddle.

Last month, Kerr made his jockey debut and said family has had a major influence in his decision to ride.

“It is probably from Dad (Tony Kerr), really. Dad working down here at Morphettville. I got introduced to the horses through that. And Dad was working a shift down here one trackwork morning,” Kerr said.

“So, I thought, ‘Oh, I’ll come down and see what it’s all about’ sort of thing. And got introduced to one of the trainers and he taught me to ride.

“But the boxing and the riding sort of coincided a little bit sort of thing to the fitness part of it and sort of keeping the weight down. And I thought, ‘Oh, I can do it a little bit with the boxing.’

“I can hopefully transition it over to the riding. And I went from there.”

Kerr’s father, Tony, has worked at Morphettville for over two decades.

“He’s worked here (at Morphettville) for a while now. 20 odd years, he has been here a long time,” Kerr said.

“I think he is part of the fabric. He has seen it all.”

Kerr, who joined the Apprentice Academy in 2024, has linked up with trainer Stuart Gower and made his riding debut at Murray Bridge on September 17, on board Trantoro in the Carlton Daught Benchmark 56 Handicap.

“He (Gower) has got a small team, him and his partner, Lizzie,” Kerr said.

“She (Trantoro) ran a good race. She came home well.

“We got a little bit lost at the start, but we finished off really well.”

Kerr said the nerves kicked in a little bit going to the starting gates.

“It was a little bit daunting. I put a bit of pressure on myself,” Kerr said.

“I always want to go well, and I want to do well for the owners and for Stewie. And I want to obviously get the horse to run the best race that they can.

“So, I had a little bit of pressure on myself, but it wasn’t too bad.”

Kerr said his first race was a lot different to riding track work.

“It is surprising how quick, like, even between trials and races, the pace is so much different. It is a lot faster,” he said,

“That first race ride, I was in the gates, and before I knew it, I was going over the finish line. So, it sort of didn’t really hit me until after. It was like, wow, I have just done my first race sort of thing.”

Since making his debut in Murray Bridge, Kerr has had three more rides, for trainer Byron Cozamanis on Jamestown Cup Day.

“That was good. It’s a good learning experience going to those country tracks,” Kerr said.

“There’s usually a bit more tight turning, and you have a couple of turns sort of thing in each race. And you learn a lot sort of thing out there.

“And hopefully when I get a little bit better, I can start coming down here (Morphettville) a bit more often.”

Kerr said the starting gates was the main difference during his first four races and pleasing the trainers.

“I just noticed straight out, like, wow, they move quick straight out the gates,” he said.

“So that was the main thing that I noticed straight away, just the pace of the race.

“The trainers are hard to please, but I try and do my best to please him. But there’s always room for improvement.”

Kerr said he still gets in the ring, with boxing one of the perfect ways to keep fit off the track.

“I still do a little bit of boxing for training to keep the weight down. I really enjoy the boxing still,” he said.

“I’d love to get back to it, but it’s just a time thing. The early mornings of the trackwork and then trying to coincide my riding, my boxing, it’s a lot of demanding work.”

Kerr started boxing at age 11 at West Beach Boxing Club before competing at West Central and Boxtek under coach Steph Bloomfield.

He went on to compete at state and national level, winning six state titles, multiple golden gloves, and a national title as a junior boxer.

“I had a few fights, about 20-odd and my record was around 50-50,” Kerr said.

“I got to travel around a lot of Australia with the boxing. A lot of trips to Queensland and to Melbourne or trips like that.

“I was always coming up against the sort of better boxers. So, I was always winning some and losing some.”

Kerr said there are several similarities to both boxing and being a jockey.

“Absolutely. Getting yourself mentally prepared to go in the ring and go into a race. It’s the same sort of thing,” he said.

“You have got to have your plan set out for yourself before you get out there. And if you do, you’re a step ahead. So, I try and do that.

“And your physical demands, like your hand-eye coordination, just sort of coordinating how far you are in a race. Or, obviously, in the ring, you must have good hand-eye coordination.”

Kerr was introduced to Morphettville as a teenager and has had several positions at the Club over the journey.

“I have been at Morphettville since I was probably about 15 years old, doing casual work, whether it’s been with the grounds team, doing some track maintenance,” he said.

“I even use to do a bit of glassing in the Diva Bar; I love my time here.”

With the 2025 Spring Racing Carnival at Morphettville ready to kick off, Kerr hopes to get a few more rides over the next few weeks.

“Everything starts to heat up now with the racing everywhere, really. So, hopefully I can get on a few more rides and get some winners,” he said.

And Kerr already has a celebration worked out for his first winner in the saddle.

“I always love a good feed. I would probably have to do that.”