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By Ray Hickson

If promising import Waterford has a limit jockey Tommy Berry says he’s a fair way off it as he shoots for three straight wins in the Rosehill Bowling Club Handicap (1500m) at Rosehill on Saturday.

Jockey Tommy Berry (Pic: Steve Hart)

The four-year-old, a half brother to the smart Wicklow, was aggressively placed by trainer Chris Waller when he resumed in a Benchmark 78 two weeks ago having won a maiden at his Australian debut back in March.

Waterford is one of a slew of lightly raced prospects from the Waller yard engaged in the final event, including another on a hat-trick in Arnold, but you get the sense Berry wouldn’t want to be on anything else.

Especially after he came from near last and swept around the field clocking a race best 34.24 for his last 600m (Punter’s Intelligence).

“He’s a nice talented horse. Chris stepped him up from maiden grade to benchmark grade pretty quick and he handled them with contempt and did it against the bias of the day,’’ Berry said.

“I was always confident with him in the run and I’ve always been confident in his ability and what he can do.

“I thought he was better than that grade, even though it was against the bias I thought he was the right horse to do it.”

The gelding, $3.90 with TAB on Friday, rises 3kg for his troubles but stays in the same grade on Saturday, and the same distance, with Berry confident the best is still to come.

“If he’s as good as we think he is he should be able to handle (the extra weight) quite fine,’’ he said.

“He’s drawn well and will be better for the first-up run, I think he will be hard to beat again.

“He was a bit fresh the other day and a bit keen going to the gates, I didn’t want to give him a message. He’s had that run now so I could probably ride him closer if I wanted to but I will see what the team wants me to do on the day and how he goes to the barriers.”

It would be a fitting win if Berry was to guide Jamaea to victory in the Group 2 $250,000 Fujitsu General Theo Marks Stakes (1300m) for trainers Robert and Luke Price.

Only a couple of weeks ago the Price partnership lost its stable star when last year’s The Gong winner and Golden Eagle runner-up Count De Rupee died suddenly following a jump out at Kembla Grange.

Jamaea showed she’s come back this spring in her usual good form with a closing second behind Zapateo in the Group 3 Toy Show (1100m) at Randwick last month and Berry hopes she can go one better.

“She was very good the other day. She got a little bit far back but she will be able to settle a bit closer from a good alley,’’ he said.

“She gets in well with the 53kg and she’s done well since then. She just doesn’t want rain, the drier the track the better for her.

Waterford wins at Rosehill on August 27

“She’s very consistent, bad barriers and wet tracks have cost her in the past because she doesn’t have great tactical speed. Every time she’s had things go her way she’s rarely been out of the money.”

A Tuesday morning spin on John O’Shea’s promising three-year-old Zou Tiger has Berry ready to partner the colt in the Group 3 $200,000 Schweppes Ming Dynasty Quality (1400m).

Zou Tiger was a dominant maiden winner first-up on the Kensington track on August 24 and while drawn wide the jockey expects he can put that out of play early.

“He’s a lovely colt with a great attitude and I like everything about him,’’ he said.

“He’s drawn awkwardly but has good tactical speed early that can get him out of trouble there.”

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday's Rosehill meeting