Safety Net

Directed by Alfie Beard

2025

Home video footage of a family’s Christmas Day present-opening is the intriguing beginning of a new football-inspired short from the Midlands.

Safety Net sees a young boy called Ali (Sammy Jepson) receive a gift of goalkeeping gloves, which are immediately put on as the excited lad heads to his backyard to try them out. He and his dad have a warm kickabout and we see the child's promising skills before cutting to Ali’s football memorabilia-filled room, as he devotedly watches matches on TV.

The film then jumps to a competitive game on the park as young Ali saves a penalty and he’s lauded for his efforts by his ever-supportive dad. And his good fortune continues as a scout arrives to offer the talented boy a chance of “superstardom”. 

Yet despite this opportunity, the father acknowledges the difficulty of the situation as he phones Alex’s estranged mother to sort out childcare arrangements. But luckily, they come to an agreement and Ali arrives at a football ground for his first taste of a training session with the local league club.

Safety Net does well to show us the issues around the exciting prospect of early football fame, versus the expensive reality and day-to-day life struggles of a working class family. The supportive nature of dad comes across appropriately as we see him doing everything in his power to make sure the chance of a lifetime is not lost. With the character played particularly well and with a lot of heart by actor Tim Sparrow.

The short itself then skips ahead in time as an older Ali (now a contemplative Matt Moore) continues to train in the youth team. And he even has time for a kickabout with his dad again, in the same garden from years ago. Back at the ground, Ali again demonstrates his skills on the pitch before a girl on a bench attempts to arrange a meet up, but Ali’s training commitments get in the way.

The story is well told and Safety Net is an adept short with a real flair for editing and composition. You really get a good sense of time and place and the natural camera movement and gritty shot choices make for an involving and relatable story.

What it lacks sadly is a bit of depth and character development as it sometimes has the feel of an elongated John Lewis TV advert given how swiftly it moves. There’s not a lot of time spent in each moment to get to know these people better. There are certainly snippets of chat but few real conversations with one significant one only happening halfway through, which felt a tad late in the proceedings. For me, a truncated version of the young Ali’s story may have allowed a more immersive drama to grow as we spend more time with the older version.

*slight spoiler ahead for Safety Net’s ending*

A final ‘kick in the teeth’ in Safety Net tackles the harsh realities of professional football and the competitive nature of the sports business. We hear so often of the lucky few who manage to make it to the big leagues. But this short very successfully explores the journey that many young boys and girls go through (the majority no doubt), who despite tremendous efforts get left on the sidelines.

A football flick about sacrifice too, it dives into thorny issues around the cruel prospects of youth dreams, and does a terrific job in conveying the arduous devotion it takes to try and “make it”. But with added soul and sensitivity, Safety Net also provides some comfort by demonstrating the importance of parental bonding.

And so Safety Net respectably holds tightly onto these core themes, whilst its first-rate technical elements help save the short from dropping the ball completely. And it's all of this which makes it an impressive short and also a stark reminder of the realities of the tricky relationship between fame, football and families.

★★★★

4 / 5

Michael Sales

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