"I was stressing," McDonald said after finally laying one hand on the Sydney jockeys' premiership at Randwick on Saturday. "It's hard ... it's not easy. Then I come second and you guys are there afterwards. It's been frustrating the last two months."

Frustrating probably only sums up a grain of McDonald's emotions of late. Title rival Nash Rawiller has been idle on 70 wins since mid-June after taking up a short-term riding contract in Japan.

The premiership was at McDonald's mercy when the Kiwi whizz-kid needed just two wins in the final month of the season to at least share his first Sydney riding title in one of the most competitive riding theatres in the world.

A suspension, a string of runners-up finishes and a solid dose of bad luck conspired to turn what should have been a short film into an unforseen mini-movie.

But in a script that had more than an ironic twist to its climax, McDonald beat home the next big thing from New Zealand with the help of another man who has been a smash hit on this side of the Tasman to draw level with Rawiller.

The 23-year-old drove Chris Waller's Reigning ($5) into an inside run to beat stablemate Black Jag ($6), under the urgings of Kiwi apprentice Rory Hutchings, to notch up his 70th metropolitan win of the season.

Reigning, which had Hutchings in the saddle last start, had been threatening to break through for some time before being afforded a McDonald peach. Favourite Laidback Larry ($3) was a distant third.

"What James McDonald has done in a short space of time is quite incredible," Waller said of this season's Golden Slipper and Queen Elizabeth Stakes-winning rider.

"He's still a young boy. You'd go back a long time to find a jockey to win a premiership this young. And that's Sydney racing. You don't just slot in overnight ... it takes time."

McDonald's meteoric rise would suggest otherwise, but even he reckons there has been more than a few bumps along the way.

"I thought my first year would go a little bit better, to be honest," McDonald said. "But it's hard. There's been some tough times and I've learnt very quickly from my mistakes. The Derby was hard, the Golden Rose was hard, but I've learnt to get over them. I'm hoping I get one more [win], but I'll remember this one for a while.

"Anyone who knows [McDonald's manager] Clocker [Craig Tompson] he's so relaxed and for a young jockey, everyone knows how tough this environment is, he's real laid-back about everything. When I'm stressed out or uptight, he's the relaxed one."

McDonald will have his book of rides at Warwick Farm on Wednesday to snare the title outright, but his relief was evident for all to see as he drew level at the top. If he does not ride a winner at the final metropolitan meeting of the season, it is believed it will be the first time the Sydney jockeys' title has been shared since 1934-35.

And there's likely to be more opportunities from Waller, who admitted to being frustrated many times when trying to secure McDonald.

"He's hard to get," Waller said. "He's in our top four selections, always. I was also talking to Nash [on Friday] and he's having a great time over there. He'll come back a better rider."