YOUNG'S Tyler Schiller is determined to make it as close to the top of Australian racing as he can after clinching the coveted Sydney apprentice jockey's premiership.
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Schiller was crowned Sydney's champion apprentice last Saturday as he landed 45 city winners for the season to finish seven clear of his nearest rival, Reece Jones.
It completed a successful first season in the city ranks after he gained experience mainly at provincial level in his first year at the Mark Newnham stable.
The 23-year-old made it four consecutive seasons that the champion Sydney apprentice has come from the Newnham stable and he couldn't be happier to put his name into the record books.
"It's pretty surreal," Schiller said.
"I always wanted to win all the premierships coming through but once I left Wagga I never really thought it would be possible until the other day when I had my hands on it.
"I had to give them a little head start with my (wrist) injury last season going into the new season but it always felt once I had a gap, I was able to maintain it, everything went back and forth, Reece would get one then I would get one.
"All the support I got was enormous from all the big stables and it made a massive difference."
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It has been a big 12 months for Schiller, who made a couple of trips home for a victory in the Albury Gold Cup and Wagga Town Plate.
He landed his first group race, the group three Dark Jewel at Scone, and then went on to capture his first metropolitan apprentice's title.
Schiller wants to use the premiership win as a platform to build his career.
"The boss messaged me when I did win it, at the last meeting and said congratulations, some great jockeys have won the apprentice title so hopefully one day I can get up there with the greats but if it's not to be, it's not to be but I'll try my best," he said.
"Even this season, I'll try to go back-to-back, that's the next goal, try to outride my city claim, finish my apprenticeship and then hopefully look for some bigger success in the group races."
Schiller is due to finish his apprenticeship in April but may have the option to extend it given the time he missed with his wrist injury.
While apprentice's cannot use their claim in group races, he still hopes to earn some opportunity in the upcoming Sydney spring carnival.
"Definitely. I'll keep the weight down as much as I can and hopefully with the weather warming up again, I can do it a bit easier and get as many rides as possible," he said.
"The lighter I can ride, the more rides I'll get so hopefully I can snag a few nice ones here and there."
Schiller gave credit to his former boss, Jerilderie trainer Phil Sweeney, and his new mentor, Newnham, for moulding him into the jockey he is today.
"I've had two great bosses, honestly," he said.
"My first boss, Phil Sweeney, he grounded me, kept me stable, supported me as much as he could and, really, just gave me a lot of confidence going through my apprenticeship the first season.
"He just gave me winners, good horses, which just built up to the same as Mark.
"When Mark was putting me on good horses at the provincials, that year being successful, then going into the metro, it's all rolled on and they've both been good mentors."
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