Jackson tried out initially at Richmond but the rover was not wanted by the club due to his size.
Despite this rejection, he had a successful career with Melbourne where he became a handy goal scorer and topped their goal-kicking in 1988 with 43 goals.
Most notably he kicked five goals in Melbourne's Preliminary Final win over Carlton that year, although he went goal-less from the forward pocket in their Grand Final loss.
A Victorian interstate representative, Jackson was picked up by Footscray in the 1991 AFL draft but did not break into their seniors.
He represented Australia in the 1990 International Rules series.