About
Jackson Civil Engineering is part of One Group Construction.
One Group entered the annual Birkett's charity 5-a-side football tournament, hosted at Portman Road.
The team walked onto the pitch with three simple objectives: represent Group well, enjoy the event, and take home the trophy. Confidence was sky-high until we saw the other teams warming up - the standard was much higher than last year, with all companies clearly sending their strongest eight players. There was even a Step-5 footballer in the mix (whatever that means)!
With rain clouds filling the sky, the group stage started. A nervy 1-1 in the first game didn't give me much faith in the team, given we only got the ball in the back of the net through an own goal. A 3-1 win in the second game was a good confidence-builder, helping us secure a 2-2 tie against last year's winners in the final group game. There was a dodgy penalty call that went our way, largely down to the referee being accosted by an animated Jesse Osei who had sprinted down the touchline, screaming “ref are you blind, that's a pen”.
In the quarter-final, we were up against the East Anglia Children's Hospices team. A fiercely contested game ended 1-1, taking us straight to penalties. In one of the poorest attacking showings of all time, team OGC managed to miss all 5 of their penalties. However, heroics by Callum Powell kept us in the competition, saving all 5 of our opponent's attempts! Archie Turrell stepped up and scored in sudden death, leaving the pressure on Callum to save the final effort… which of course he did
The semi-final was a repeat match against last year's winners, OCS. Going 2-0 down in the first few minutes definitely wasn't the game plan… but that classic OGC ‘never give up’ attitude (and Stephen Chittock's left foot) helped us come back to win 3-2.
Going into the final, our opponents included an ex semi-pro who had already secured the golden boot, which he added to in the first few minutes to take us 1-0 down. A tactical review at half-time (mainly forced by Ryan Gibbins going down with cramp) put Matt Barber up top for just 30 seconds before sliding one past their keeper. Another goal in quick succession meant for a nervy last 5 minutes as we tried to hold onto the lead. Of course, this was never in doubt with Alex Hawkins on the field, who promptly booted anything nearing our penalty box out of the stadium.
The final whistle blew. We had done it. 2026 champions. There were plenty of tears (the high pollen count meant for some awful hayfever). What a day it had been - £22,500 being raised for EACH and the ITFC Foundation and, almost as importantly, One Group Construction engraved on the trophy.
About Jackson Civil Engineering
Jackson is a regionally structured civil engineering firm with national capabilities. Our no-nonsense approach to work means that our clients keep coming back because they can rely on us to get the job done on time and on budget. We have a strong reputation a...
