Review: Jumpers for Goalposts, West Yorkshire Playhouse

Obviously, he was anything but. His major hit The Kitchen Sink was praised by the critics of the capital. Having seen the regional premiere production in Hull, it was easy to wonder if the metropolitan elite were just a little dazzled to hear writing that was honest, raw and very, very Hull. The Kitchen Sink was over-hyped. Jumpers for Goalposts is anything but. This is the play that fulfils the talent Wells has promised since he took to playwriting via a course at West Yorkshire Playhouse just a few years ago.

Tired of seeing romantic comedies that were conventional in every sense and appeared to suggest people only fall in love within a few postcodes of Notting Hill, Tom Wells found an interesting place in which to set his own rom-com. Not many fictional romances have been born in the changing room of a very bad five-a-side gay football team. Led by lesbian Viv, the team features a “token straight” in Joe and a collection of three other individuals – and each of the characters is drawn with beautiful individuality.

Wells’ writing in Jumpers for Goalposts is sparse, efficient, heartfelt and moving. It does, just at the very end, tip towards ruthless efficiency and makes you wonder about the cynicism that might lie behind a play that is so very efficient, but for the vast majority the beating heart of the play is plain to see.

Viv is desperate to beat any of the other three teams in the mini-league in which Barely Athletic play. Each of the rest of the team is battling their own personal demons. Beardy wants to play Hull gay pride to help rehabilitate himself following a homophobic attack, Joe wants to find an escape from the endless pain of grief and Danny wants Luke. As Viv, Vivienne Gibbs’ performance appears to sit slightly outside the rest of the cast, but for the most part this is a team playing beautifully together. Matt Sutton captures the pure sadness of grief while Andy Rush as Beardy is a man just about keeping the lid on his life and temper, both of which you feel might boil over. As Luke, Philip Duguid-McQuillan is a constant delight.

This is the play that should win Wells as many awards as it will high praise.

To Sept 21.