It was officially opened in 1926, it was used in the filming of more than 30 films, TV programmes and adverts, and it once hosted a Great Britain v West Germany qualifying match for the Olympic Games. But for fans it was simply Claremont Road, the home of their beloved Hendon FC, and they were heartbroken when the club, also known as the Greens, was forced out in September 2008, after 82 years.

In 2006, one fan decided to make a short film of the ground before it closed, for posterity.

Bob Stanley is the keyboard player, producer and songwriter of the group St Etienne, and he has been a fan of the Greens since the mid-1990s.

“It was apparent for a while that they were going to have to leave Claremont Road,“ says the 48-year-old, “so I thought we should get a few shots of the ground while it was still there.“

The result was the 15-minute Monty the Lamb, named after and following the club’s mascot, also known as Dave Garner, on a day in his life, walking around the ground and recounting the club’s history and past players.

“Monty was something to hang the film on,“ Bob explains. “Most clubs at non-league level don’t tend to have a mascot, so he was a bit special.

“I’ve always liked non-league football because I grew up miles away from the league clubs, in Surrey,“ he continues. “Hendon’s got a great history and it’s a really nice community club and it had a nice, intact original ground. I ended up going down there most Saturdays.“

The final game was played in 2008 and the ground was sold for private development by Barnet Council, but it was left derelict for many years, with locals facing problems from squatters, before it was demolished in November 2012.

The film forms part of a trilogy of films made by St Etienne, A London Trilogy, which has just been released by the British Film Institute on DVD.

The trilogy consists of Finisterre (2003), a homage to London and soundtracked by songs from the band’s album of the same name; What Have You Done Today Mervyn Day? (2005), which follows paperboy Mervyn Day on his round across east London’s Lower Lea Valley in the years before it became the Olympic Park; and This is Tomorrow (2007), commissioned by the Royal Festival Hall to mark its renovation and grand reopening.

Monty the Lamb is one of the DVD’s special features, which also include three short films about London cafés and a short about the artist Banksy.

“Monty the Lamb fits into the trilogy because it’s an aspect of London,“ says Bob. “The ground isn’t there anymore, this is probably the only film footage left of it. It was nice to get it out, and we hope people enjoy seeing it again. It’s quite touching.“

  • Monty the Lamb is available from all good DVD retailers and by mail order from the BFI shop. Details: bfi.org.uk/shop