Hard-working Hartlepool family firm is set for expansion

And it could not be more deserved for Phil Ross, 39, a former footballer who suffered two horrific leg breaks which ended his career.

Now he’s the director of P&A Construction along with fellow footballing brother Andrew, 27, while a third sibling Shaun, 29, also works for the firm and used to be on the books of Luton’s football club.

Phil made front page headlines in the Hartlepool Mail in 2011.

He had his leg shattered for the second time in three years after a freak tackle in the early stages of Hartlepool FC’s game against Prudhoe Town.

The horror injury saw a metal rod - which was inserted into Phil’s leg after the previous incident - completely snapped.

Phil, who was also a former winger at Hartlepool United in the 1990s, said: “I was 30-odd by then and at that stage you have to make a decision. Work comes first.”

He gave up football to build up the business. P&A Construction flourished and, thanks almost entirely to word of mouth, its reputation grew.

Now the firm gets orders all over the North East and is also doing the construction work to transform the former Hartlepool Mail offices. Other orders have included a housebuilding project in Durham.

Phil added: “We travel to Yarm, we travel to Carlton and it’s now a case of making that decision of whether we make the next step up. We are a small company but we are getting the chances to expand and we have got to try it.”