6 August 2025
James Thomas is no stranger to early mornings, hard graft, and working as part of a team. A former professional footballer and Dad to a 3-year-old son, James has taken his skills from the pitch to the construction site — and he’s enjoying his Apprentice journey so far.
Since football, James has turned his hand to a few different jobs — labouring for brickies, landscaping, and more recently, working in utilities. “I’ve done a few different things,” he says, “but most of my experience was in the utilities section.”
When asked how he’s finding the job now, James said: “Yeah, I’ve enjoyed it. Plenty of hours and working with a good squad of boys makes it better. Being part of a solid team helps the days go quicker and the work feel more rewarding.”
One thing that surprised James was about how many types of concrete finishes there are — and the different techniques that go into each one. It’s been a learning curve, but one he’s getting stuck into.
A typical day starts early with travel to site. “Sometimes we’re setting up the job if it hasn’t been done yet,” he says. “Then we’ll work with the pump to pour and move on to the finishing after that.”
So far, a highlight has been getting to use the power float for the first time. “There’s just a bit of satisfaction in doing a good job with it,” James says.
For anyone just starting out, James’ advice would be: “Rome wasn’t built in a day. Just stick in, keep your head down, and listen.”
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