Berry and O’Shea tell inquiry calls during ban were welfare checks
Craig Kerry
Jockey Tommy Berry and disqualified trainer John O’Shea told an inquest that communication between them was limited to welfare checks and discussions about overseas trips while stewards examined potential breaches of the Randwick conditioner ban.
Racing NSW stewards held an investigation on Thursday following Berry’s televised post-race comments at Warwick Farm on June 3, which indicated he had spoken to O’Shea and usual assistant trainer Tom Charlton that morning about eventual winner Hovland’s tactics.
O’Shea initiated a four-month disqualification for inappropriate conduct on March 17 and must comply with a long list of restrictions, including taking part in the training of horses. If charged and found guilty, O’Shea’s ban could be reinstated from the moment of the violation.
Thursday’s inquest was adjourned with no decision made after Berry, O’Shea and Charlton, the stable’s sole trainer, were questioned.
Head steward Tom Moxon said Berry’s phone records showed conversations between Berry and O’Shea on the morning of June 3. They also showed calls from Berry to O’Shea on Golden Slipper day, March 21; Riding Athabascan for Charlton on 30 May and after riding Snow in May at the stable trial on 1 June.
Berry and O’Shea declined to talk about horses during interviews. Moxon repeatedly pointed out the timing of the searches on days when Berry was riding or trying out horses at the barn.
“I understand the questions you are asking, Mr. Moxon,” Berry said near the end of the investigation. “You can ask me these questions a few more times if you want, but frankly I can’t offer any more than what I’ve already said.”
Previously Berry said: “It jogs your memory to get in them, to pick up the phone and call John and see how he’s doing and see how he’s doing.”
Berry said it was “a habit” to mention “Tom and John” in the post-race interview.
“You’ve been trying to talk about John and Tom for so long,” Berry said. “For a while I only talked about John and at a time when Tom was in the partnership that is simply not true.”
O’Shea said he summoned all the jockeys except Berry who had gone to the stable on Golden Slipper day and told them to speak to Charlton about racing matters. He said the 22-second call from Berry after the meeting was to tell him he couldn’t do a boot camp in Phuket and that it wasn’t about the Silence run that day.
O’Shea said Berry’s calls and visits were merely welfare checks and that he was “very grateful.”
“He’s right. I’m not in a better mood,” O’Shea said.
He said: “There was no way I could discuss any horse tactics with the jockeys.”
“And I want to tell you how seriously I take this. I traveled 10,000 miles to America to compete in the Kentucky Derby and two weeks before we left we had applied to go to the meeting with Racing NSW,” he added.
“Racing NSW did not respond until four days after the race. We still never attended the race meeting as I did not want to compromise my licence.”
“No attempt was made to conceal my conversations with Tommy Berry. This is because these conversations were entirely based on our friendship in nature.”
Moxon also questioned the duo about the change made to the WhatsApp conversation on May 14, which enabled disappearing messages. The messages would disappear after 24 hours. Both said they didn’t know how to change the settings and had nothing to hide.
