Carberry, who was born in Croydon on 29 September 1980, is of Guyanese and Barbadian descent. He was educated at St John Rigby College in West Wickham.

Surrey

Carberry began playing for the Surrey Seconds in 1998, while the following season he made his List A debut for the Surrey Cricket Board against Norfolk in the 1999 NatWest Trophy. He scored 19 runs in the match, which the Surrey Cricket Board won. He played in the team's following round match against Cheshire, with Carberry being dismissed for 4 runs by Christopher Hall, in a match which ended in victory for Cheshire. He spent two further years in the Surrey Seconds, before making his first-class debut for the county against Leicestershire. He played 6 first-class matches in 2001, scoring 311 runs and scoring his maiden half century, against Glamorgan. He also made his List A debut for Surrey against Leicestershire, with the match following immediately after his first-class debut. The following season he made only one first-class appearance, against Cambridge UCCE, in a season in which Surrey won their 19th County Championship. He did, however, score his maiden first-class century in the match against Cambridge UCCE, making 153 not out. He found more opportunities that season in List A cricket, playing a handful of matches, though without success. However, with opportunities limited at Surrey, Carberry joined Kent for the 2003 season.

Kent

Carberry was signed initially by Kent as a batsman who could stand-in for Rob Key, whose international career was in its infancy, when he was on international duty. His first-class debut for Kent came against Leicestershire in the 2003 County Championship. With Key absent for the majority of the season, Carberry opened the batting in most of the matches he played, making 14 appearances and h