View source for The Other Final

{{short description|2003 documentary film by Johan Kramer}}
{{italic title}}
{{Infobox football match
|title=The Other Final
|image=[[File:The Other Final DVD Cover.jpg|200px|border]]
|event=Friendly
|team1=[[Bhutan national football team|Bhutan]]
|team1association = {{Flagdeco|Bhutan|size=30px}}
|team1score=4
|team2=[[Montserrat national football team|Montserrat]]
|team2association={{Flagicon image|Flag of Montserrat.svg|size=35px}}
|team2score=0
|details= 
|date=30 June 2002
|stadium=[[Changlimithang Stadium]]
|city=[[Thimphu]]
|man_of_the_match1a =
|referee=[[Steve Bennett (referee)|Steve Bennett]] ([[The Football Association|England]])
|attendance=15,000<ref name="CNN" />
|weather=
|previous= 
|next= 
}}

'''''The Other Final''''' is a [[2003 in film|2003]] [[documentary film]], directed by {{Illm|qid=Q2127483|Johan Kramer}} of Dutch communications agency Kessels Kramer, about a [[association football|football]] match between [[Bhutan national football team|Bhutan]] and [[Montserrat national football team|Montserrat]], the then-lowest ranked teams in the [[FIFA World Rankings]]. The game was played in the [[Changlimithang Stadium]], [[Thimphu]], [[Bhutan]] on the same day as the [[2002 FIFA World Cup Final]].  Bhutan won the game 4–0, their first ever victory and the first time they had kept a [[clean sheet]]. The friendly match, officially sanctioned by [[FIFA]], saw Bhutan rise out of the bottom two of the world rankings and kept Montserrat in last place. The [[Referee (association football)|referee]] was [[England|Englishman]] [[Steve Bennett (referee)|Steve Bennett]].

==Background==
{{Quote box
|quote=Held on the same day as the World Cup Final, this alternative final featured the world’s lowest ranking teams of Bhutan and Montserrat. The project was conceived and filmed by KesselsKramer, with the intention of communicating that football needn’t be so focused on competition. Instead, this sport that crossed all national boundaries could be viewed as a means of bringing people together in fellowship.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kesselskramer.com/project/3629-2|title=KesselsKramer – The Other Final|website=KesselsKramer|accessdate=5 December 2021}}<!-- previously http://www.kesselskramer.com/communication/projects/the-other-final --></ref>
|source=Statement from KesselsKramer on the purpose of the documentary.
|width=50%
|align=right
|quoted=1
|qalign=right
}}
 	
In 2002, Montserrat were ranked last in the world FIFA rankings with Bhutan second last. Prior to their meeting, Bhutan, who first competed in 1982, had never won an official match (they had one victory over [[Tibet national football team|Tibet]], who are not FIFA members so the match was not officially sanctioned),<ref name="ELOBhutan">{{cite web|url=http://www.eloratings.net/Bhutan.htm|title=World Football Elo Ratings: Bhutan|website=eloratings.net|publisher=World Football Elo Ratingsand Advanced Satellite Consulting|accessdate=29 July 2014}}</ref> whilst Montserrat, who made their debut in 1950 had only managed two victories, both against [[Anguilla national football team|Anguilla]] in the [[1995 Caribbean Cup#Qualifying Group 4|1995 Caribbean Cup]], in their entire history.<ref name="ELOMontserrat">{{cite web|url=http://www.eloratings.net/Montserrat.htm|title=World Football Elo Ratings: Montserrat|website=eloratings.net|publisher=World Football Elo Ratings and Advanced Satellite Consulting|accessdate=29 July 2014}}</ref> Additionally, financial constraints and a slump in the popularity of the game in the 1980s and 1990s had impacted the development of the national team in Bhutan,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kuenselonline.com/the-sports-scene-in-bhutan-what-is-wrong/#.U99IoPn1AQY|title=The sports scene in Bhutan: what is wrong?|last=Acharya|first=Gopilal|date=16 December 2002|website=kuenselonline.com|publisher=[[Kuensel]]|accessdate=4 August 2014|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140808053813/http://www.kuenselonline.com/the-sports-scene-in-bhutan-what-is-wrong/#.U99IoPn1AQY|archivedate=8 August 2014}}</ref> as well as the fact that the low level of facilities in the country had prevented the team from attempting to qualify for the [[FIFA World Cup]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://sg.sports.yahoo.com/news/saff-championship-2013-team-profile-bhutan-032500589--spt.html|title=SAFF Championship 2013: Team Profile – Bhutan|last=Srivastava|first=Ayush|date=31 August 2013|website=sports.yahoo.com|publisher=[[Yahoo]]|accessdate=2 August 2014}}</ref>

Montserrat had also suffered their own significant misfortunes, when the [[Soufrière Hills]] erupted causing widespread devastation to the island. [[Seismology|Seismic]] activity had occurred in 1897–1898, 1933–1937, and again in 1966–1967, but the eruption that began on 18 July 1995 was the first since the 16th century in Montserrat.<ref name="gvp">{{cite gvp|vnum=1600–05=|name=Soufrière Hills}}</ref> When [[pyroclastic flow]]s and mudflows began occurring regularly, the capital, Plymouth, was evacuated, and a few weeks later a pyroclastic flow covered the city in several metres of debris. The British [[destroyer]] {{HMS|Liverpool|D92|6}} took a large role in evacuating Montserrat's population to other islands; these included [[Antigua and Barbuda]], who warned they would not be able to cope with many more refugees.<ref name="osborne">{{cite web |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/politics97/news/08/0821/montserrat.shtml |title= Montserrat Chief Minister Resigns As People Reject Aid Offer |publisher=BBC |work=Politics '97 |accessdate=10 November 2010}}</ref> About 7,000 people, or two-thirds of the population, left Montserrat; 4,000 to the United Kingdom.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4237882.stm |date=12 September 2005 |title=Montserrat evacuation remembered |publisher=BBC |accessdate= 19 November 2010}}</ref> These events understandably had a major impact on football in Montserrat and the team did not compete internationally for four years and when they returned they had to play all of their matches away from Montserrat<ref name="ELOMontserrat" /> after the eruptions had destroyed the only football stadium of an international standard.<ref name="Variety" />

At the same time, with the [[Netherlands national football team|Netherlands]] having failed to qualify for the [[2002 FIFA World Cup]], two Dutch ad-agency partners, Johan Kramer and Matthijs de Jongh, not having their home team to cheer on pondered who the worst team in the world might be. (De Jongh: "That's the official version, but the real story behind it is that I had been in Bhutan in 2000 and 2001, and I was fascinated by the country and wanted to share it."<ref name="worksthatwork">{{cite magazine | url=https://worksthatwork.com/8/bhutan-and-monserrat-football-game | last=Urquhart | first=Robert | title=Football on the roof of the world |date=November 2016 | magazine=Works that Work | number=8 | publisher= |accessdate=4 December 2021}}</ref>) With Bhutan and Montserrat so close to each other at the bottom of the FIFA rankings, they set out to arrange a match between the two nations.<ref name="Variety">{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2003/film/reviews/the-other-final-1200539764/|title=Review: 'The Other Final'|last=Nesselson|first=Lisa|date=26 August 2003|website=variety.com|publisher=[[Penske Business Media]]|accessdate=29 July 2014}}</ref> The match was not as easily arranged as might initially be thought. Firstly, this match was being arranged by private individuals rather than by the relevant football federations during a normal international fixture window. Both sides thought that the idea was unrealistic in the beginning, and officials from both federations thought the initial suggestion of the match was a joke and had little knowledge of each other's countries.<ref name="Kuensel"/> Johan Kramer said that he thought Montserrat were willing to agree to the friendly and to travel all the way to Bhutan because their government felt that the publicity from the match would counterbalance the reports about the volcanic eruptions on the island.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theglobalgame.com/kramer.html|title=The Global Game: The Other Final – Interview with Johan Kramer|date=2 June 2004|website=theglobalgame.com|publisher=JZ Editing & Publishing|accessdate=2 August 2014|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131210143229/http://www.theglobalgame.com/kramer.html|archivedate=10 December 2013}}</ref>

Three weeks prior to the match, Dutch coach [[Arie Schans]] flew out to Bhutan to take temporary charge of the side and took four hour long daily training sessions with the team in order to prepare them for the match.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kuenselonline.com/bhutan-prepares-to-meet-montserrat/#.U99EIPn1AQY|archive-date=6 August 2014|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140806015211/http://www.kuenselonline.com/bhutan-prepares-to-meet-montserrat/#.U99EIPn1AQY|url-status=dead|title=Bhutan prepares to meet Montserrat|last=Wangdi|first=Kencho|date=17 June 2002|website=kuenselonline.com|publisher=[[Kuensel]]|accessdate=2 August 2014}}</ref> There was a considerable deal of anticipation in [[Thimphu]] prior to the game,<ref name="Kuensel">{{cite web|url=http://www.kuenselonline.com/anxious-wait-for-the-other-final-over/#.U99ESPn1AQY|archive-date=6 August 2014|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140806015212/http://www.kuenselonline.com/anxious-wait-for-the-other-final-over/#.U99ESPn1AQY|url-status=dead|title=Anxious wait for the "other final" over|last=Wangdi|first=Kencho|date=27 June 2002|website=kuenselonline.com|publisher=[[Kuensel]]|accessdate=2 August 2014}}</ref> though the [[Bhutan Football Federation]] sought to play down the importance of victory, saying it was more important to focus on participation than winning.<ref name="Kuensel" /> However, both sets of players were very much focused on getting a result, [[Dinesh Chhetri]] said that Bhutan would win by at least two goals to nil,<ref name="Kuensel" /> whereas Montserratian midfielder Antoine Lake-Willix thought they would win 3–0.<ref name="Kuensel" />

==Match report==
{{Football box
|date = 30 June 2002
|time = 10:54
|team1 = {{fb-big|BHU}}
|score = 4–0
|report =
|team2 = {{fb-big|MSR}}
|goals1 = 
*[[Wangay Dorji|Dorji]] {{goal|4||67||78}}
*[[Dinesh Chhetri|Chhetri]] {{goal|76}}
|goals2 =
|stadium = [[Changlimithang Stadium]], [[Thimphu]]
|attendance = 15,000
|referee = [[Steve Bennett (referee)|Steve Bennett]] ([[The Football Association|England]]) 
}}
 	
The game started strongly for Montserrat and Bhutan struggled to keep them at bay during early exchanges,<ref name="RAOOther">{{cite web|url=http://www.raonline.ch/pages/bt/sport/bt_sportfootball03b.html|title=World Cup 2002: The other final – Bhutan met Montserrat|last=Wangdi|first=Kencho|date=28 June 2002|website=raonline.ch|publisher=RA Online / Kuensel|accessdate=23 July 2014}}</ref> however, initial nerves were settled after five minutes when [[Wangay Dorji]] headed a goal to give Bhutan the lead.<ref name="RAOOther" /> This gave them the momentum to press on, but their finishing was lax and they were unable to convert the chance they created.<ref name="RAOOther" /> Montserrat were able to keep Bhutan at bay for the rest of the half and the game remained at 1–0 until well past the hour mark when referee, [[Steve Bennett (referee)|Steve Bennett]] awarded Bhutan a free-kick. Dorji stepped up and scored his second of the game.<ref name="RAOOther" /> The momentum remained with Bhutan and veteran striker [[Dinesh Chhetri]] scored a third before Dorji took full advantage of a tiring Montserratian team to complete his hat trick and seal a 4–0 victory,<ref name="RAOOther" /> Bhutan's first victory on the international stage against any opposition, indeed, their first ever result of any kind, and the first time they had ever kept a clean sheet.<ref name="ELOBhutan" /> Overall, it seemed unlikely that Montserrat would be able to put up much of a fight, struggling as a team not only with the altitude, the game was played at {{convert|7500|ft|m|sigfig=2}},<ref name="CNN">{{cite web|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/worldcup/06/30/bhutan.montserrat.reut/|title=Bhutan victorious in 'other final'|date=30 June 2002|website=cnn.com|publisher=[[Reuters]]|accessdate=2 August 2014}}</ref> Montserrat rarely troubled the Bhutanese goalkeeper, having only one shot of note, which Vladimir Farrell fired straight at the Bhutan goalkeeper.<ref name="CNN" /> A crowd of 15,000 watched the game, which followed an hour-long dance program designed to showcase the Buddhist traditions of the country.<ref name="CNN" />

==Awards==
''The Other Final'' claimed two awards:
* [[Avignon Festival|Avignon Film Festival]]'s best documentary (2003)
* ''Bermuda International Film Festival'' – Documentary Prize – Special Mention (2003)

==Still photography and photobook==
In association with [[KesselsKramer]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kesselskramerpublishing.com/catalogue/the-other-final-book/|title=The Other Final Book|website=KesselsKramer Publishing|publisher=KesselsKramer|accessdate=5 December 2021}}</ref> the Dutch photographer {{Illm|qid=Q2201564|Hans van der Meer}} photographed the run-up in Bhutan to the match, and the match itself.<ref name="worksthatwork" /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.culture24.org.uk/art/photography-and-film/art80369 |title=World Cup 2010: Hans van der Meer's Dutch dreams on European Fields at Crane Kalman |date=6 July 2010 |website=Culture24 |accessdate=4 December 2021}}</ref> The photographs were collected into a photobook, ''Bhutan–Montserrat: The Other Final''.<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://depthoffield.universiteitleiden.nl/2540f03nl/ |last=Schoonhoven | first=Han |title=Hans van der Meer |date=December 2008 | journal=Fotolexicon | number=40 | publisher=Centre for Digital Scholarship, Leiden University | accessdate=4 December 2021}}</ref><ref>{{OCLC|9789074159555}}.</ref><ref group="n">Hans van der Meer, ''Bhutan–Montserrat: The Other Final'' ([Amsterdam]: De Verbeelding, 2002; {{ISBN|90-74159-55-9}}). Text by Chris Barrett; text and captions in both English and [[Dzongkha]].</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of association football films]]

==Notes==
<references group="n" />

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
*{{IMDb title|id=0379419|title=The Other Final}}

{{Bhutan national football team}}
{{Montserrat national football team}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Other Final, The}}
[[Category:2003 documentary films]]
[[Category:2002 in Caribbean football]]
[[Category:2003 films]]
[[Category:International association football matches]]
[[Category:Documentary films about association football]]
[[Category:Dutch documentary films]]
[[Category:Dutch sports films]]
[[Category:Films set in Bhutan]]
[[Category:Films shot in Bhutan]]
[[Category:Montserrat national football team matches]]
[[Category:Bhutan national football team matches]]
[[Category:2002 in Bhutanese football]]
[[Category:June 2002 sports events in Asia]]