Rugby Den The Dengineers

I'm Lauren. And I'm Joe and this is The Dengineers.

The show that puts you in charge of building your very own dream den.

Dens for adventure...

It's a secret door!

..Hanging out with your friends and family...

It's amazing!

-Yeah!

-And dens built to fulfil your dreams.

It's amazing. Thank you so much.

Whatever your idea,

the Dengineers team are here to transform your inspiration

into amazing spaces.

-Wow!

-Built especially for you.

This den is done!

Merry Christmas!

Whoa!

Waa!

We're here to surprise one lucky boy in Cambridge

and give him his dream den.

Yes!

Is it a rugby den?

-Yes!

-Good because if it wasn't, this would be weird.

Oh, yeah. My back hurts now.

-Stretch it out.

-Let's find out who is today's dengineer.

Today's dengineer is 12-year-old Will from Cambridge.

I need help from the Dengineers because I love rugby

and I want to play for England one day.

Rugby is Will's life.

He loves the sport and loves to play it.

It's the only thing he wants to do.

He watches and plays a lot.

I mean a lot of rugby.

But recently, Will's favourite sport has been taken away from him.

I was diagnosed with Langerhans cell histiocytosis about a year ago now.

Will has a rare form of cancer,

which affects his blood and skin cells.

Will has been in and out of hospital for the

last 12 months having chemotherapy.

During his treatment, Will had to give up rugby.

He wasn't allowed to go on the field. He wasn't allowed to train.

It's really hard as a sister to see your brother in pain all the time

and especially at the start of the process,

when he was always going down to hospital and

I rarely got to see him.

Will absolutely deserved this den because he has been through so much

in the last 12 to 18 months, having chemotherapy,

having to learn to inject himself and just doesn't complain about what

he has to go through.

Please, Dengineers, I need your help.

Don't you worry, Will.

Our help is exactly what you're going to get.

You just don't know it yet.

Will and his class think that they are being filmed for

his rugby club but they have no idea that we're here.

And they're about to go out onto the field.

Come on, let's get in position.

The Dengineers team have rigged the place with hidden cameras.

As Will and his classmates come out of the changing room,

we decide to get a closer look.

-Don't...

-Get back, get back, get back.

OK, they're literally walking out right down here, right now.

Get down, get down, get down. Let's go!

TV's glamorous.

Will and his class are on the pitch,

so it's time for us to give him the surprise of his life.

Uh-oh, I think we've been spotted!

Hello, everybody. Hi!

Erm, we've got to be honest with you,

we're not actually here to film about the rugby club.

My name is Lauren and this is Joe.

And we are from CBBC's the Dengineers!

-Oh!

-We're looking for Will!

Where is Will?

Will, guess what? We're going to build your dream rugby den.

-How do you feel, mate?

-Shocked.

Shocked? Did you have any idea that

we've been hiding out just over there?

No. I saw the load of vans

-but...

-We've been in there since Tuesday!

When Lauren and Joe walked up, I thought, this is so amazing.

I'm very excited for this den because I've always dreamed

of somewhere to go where I could be myself,

where I can just go to do the thing that I love and that's rugby.

Well, Will, we're going to take you away now because we've got loads

of work to get done if you're going to have your rugby den.

-Are you ready for it?

-Yeah!

-Let's go!

-Come on, Will.

-Let's do it.

-See you guys!

Yeah! Yes!

Our first port of call is the Dengineers' mobile HQ,

which has some mega-cool technology which can bring Will's den to life.

Will, welcome to the Dengineers mobile HQ.

In here, Will, is where we're going

to get all of the ideas out your head,

get them onto this big computer and work out what you need for your den.

So, mate, why do you like rugby so much?

I got into rugby from my stepdad.

He had played it ever since he was a kid.

And we started watching our first game.

I started getting really into it.

OK, so it's all about the rugby.

Let's get stuck in. What are we talking about for the outside,

-for example?

-I'm thinking a rugby ball shape.

-Yes!

-Wow.

-Like, sort of that on the ground.

-That way round.

-Like a pod, almost.

Yeah, yeah. If that is what I think it is.

-Who's that?

-Exeter Chiefs.

So, are they the club you support?

Yeah, that's the club I support.

Right, and what colour scheme would you like?

I think inside of it, I'm thinking will mainly be, like,

that sort of colour inside because that's the colour of Exeter Chiefs.

What do we reckon? Are we going to watch a bit of rugger

-in there with your mates?

-Yeah.

Yes. Look at that. What do you think about the flooring there?

I love falling on grass and grass and mud and stuff.

-Wow.

-So, I'm thinking...

I love that. You love falling on mud!

-That is just your life, isn't it?

-Yeah!

Well, I think it's looking amazing.

Will, are you feeling happy?

-Very happy.

-Good man.

For his mood board, Will has chosen the shape of a rugby ball,

colours of his favourite team,

a screen to watch games and fake grass flooring to get the feeling of

being on the pitch.

And we've got just the designer for the job.

Meet Sege, a creative genius with over 30 years in the building biz.

He knows how to nail a massive project - just like this one.

All right, Will, we're here in the garden.

You've got quite a lot of room to work with, so,

whereabouts do you see your den going?

I'm planning it over there.

-OK.

-A few bits to sort out but we'll get there.

So, Sege, what's the plan?

So, Will, you want the outside of this den to be in the shape of

-a rugby ball?

-Yeah.

-Right.

That is a very tricky shape, of course, and a very tricky den.

By definition, the rugby ball doesn't really sit on the ground

very easily. It kind of wobbles.

No, no, I'm thinking that. I'm thinking,

how do we stop it from wobbling?

What about the inside? We're looking for some seating,

so you can watch the game in comfort.

Perhaps with your friends as well.

-Yeah.

-And maybe a bit of a tactics board, maybe,

to sort of discuss how you could perhaps manage the team?

-Yeah.

-How about maybe some kit cupboards?

Yeah, that would be amazing.

So, Will, are you feeling happy with all of Sege's plans?

I'm feeling very happy about this.

Sege has designed the den to look like an actual rugby ball.

The windows will look like stitches on a vintage style ball with a door

for access at the back.

The interior is a rugby pitch,

with seating areas and goalpost cupboards at either end.

There'll also be a TV and whiteboard

for Will and his mate to watch

games and discuss tactics.

Now, I reckon we have got quite a lot to do, so, Sege,

what can we help you with?

Well, there's a lot of stuff behind you that needs moving,

so I think what would be a good idea is, you lot can crack on with that,

while I go away and work out how I'm going to stop the den rolling away!

Actually, that's probably a good idea.

-Off you go. Good luck!

-Bye, Sege!

Come on. Right, let's do it.

Everyone's helping. We've even got Mum on board,

getting her hands dirty.

Whoa!

Let's roll it. This is great, guys.

We've got a right technique on the go here.

Sege is definitely the right man for the job.

I think he definitely understands every idea that's

coming out of my head.

With the job nearly complete,

it's time for me to test out my rugby skills.

Argh!

MAN YELPS

Or maybe not. I almost took out Soundman Ben.

He's fine. You're all right?

And in no time at all, the garden is cleared.

Mum, thank you very much for your help.

I'll take your gloves from you.

Yeah, we love you but we need you to sling your hook

because from this point on, it's dengineers only.

So, ta-ra!

-Bye!

-Bye!

-Bye!

I'm a little bit nervous of Will being in control of this den

but I do trust him.

Before the main build can get started,

the Dengineers team needs to get cracking with the ground-works.

We have kick-off!

The ground-works is going absolutely fantastically well.

This is a bit of an odd-sized base from the because in terms of dens,

it's one of the smallest bases I've ever done.

But it's going to carry perhaps one of the biggest dens I've ever done.

And this den needs some serious cement engineering.

Sege is going to use reinforced concrete

to take the weight of the den.

And a steel mesh is sunk into the cement

to give it even more strength.

With one final swoop, the ground-works are complete

and left to set.

It's day one of the build and we need to get cracking.

When the Dengineers roll into town, we come with a van-load of kit.

And we've set up just in time, as the den has arrived.

So, what do you think? Seeing it first time?

-It's massive.

-It is massive.

That's a good word for it. It's enormous, Sege.

It's very big, yeah.

I've lived in smaller flats than that.

That is the rugby ball of all rugby balls, don't you think?

Go big or go home.

But we might have just run into our first problem.

At two metres wide, the den is looking pretty big.

And the entrance to the garden, not so big.

It's not going to go in there, is it?

Well, here's the thing, you see.

I've measured it and I've mentioned it again

and looking at that and looking at THAT...

We've got two centimetres to play with.

-It's that tight?

-It's going to be a bit of a struggle.

There's a possibility we might not actually get it through the gap.

I hope we get over that because

we've got to get it in and it must go in.

The second obstacle is getting the den off the lorry,

which takes a lot of precision.

It's up, it's up, it's up!

Wa-hey!

We definitely want to keep our eye on this ball.

That's a proper rugby ball.

It is.

Wow. I can't believe the size of it.

So, the mammoth task of getting 850kg

of solid den into the garden begins.

That's the weight of two male polar bears.

Push!

Whoa, whoa! That's it.

It's not going to fit!

-Looking at that now..

-It's just too big!

Ready? Go on!

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Everybody stop!

Everybody stop. We are stuck.

Right, just push it back.

Go on.

-That'll do. Whoa.

-So, it basically doesn't fit.

Yeah, it's completely stuck.

We've taken half of the wall off on the back and there's no room on the

other side, so, we've had to pull it back

and we've got to wait until Sege

tells us what's going to happen because at the moment,

-it's not getting in there.

-Yeah.

Sege "The Ledge" has one more idea.

And down comes more of the fence.

It's going to fit. It's fine now.

-Right, nice and steady.

-Yeah.

-Go on.

Getting the den into the garden has taken nearly three hours.

Push!

-Go on!

-And with one more mighty push, it's finally through.

Let's go round the front, so we can see it on the back, yeah?

Let's go. Go!

Go on, on again.

Whoa.

Look at it!

Push!

We did it!

That is so satisfying.

-You did it, Sege.

-Well, we all did it.

That was good teamwork, that was.

It's nice to see you sweat for a change.

Cheeky, isn't he?

As the den is put into its final position,

it's time for Will to have his first peek inside.

-Wow!

-It's big, isn't it?

Yeah, it's absolutely massive.

It's like a TARDIS.

Yeah! I'm so excited for this.

Lovely as it is, we've got a lot more work to do.

-So, are you ready?

-Yeah. I'm ready.

Good man, let's do it.

To stop the ball rolling away,

the final job of is to secure the den into the reinforced concrete.

What I enjoyed about today was seeing where the ball is going to be

placed, what shape it is, how MASSIVE it is.

We've had a really, really difficult day getting the den in the garden.

We've got a bit of a mammoth task in

front of us to get this done in time.

So, no matter how big the job is, it's just got to get done.

As day two begins,

there's a huge amount of work to get through.

The first job is to smooth out the den's rough edges and touch up the

paintwork.

And when it comes to the Dengineers, teamwork makes the dream work.

And it's time for Will to get his hands dirty with a bit of painting.

Nice long strokes, Will.

Up and down. Don't press it so hard, just let the paint do the work.

Whilst the rest of the Dengineers crack on,

there's always time for a game of rugby.

Oh!

Ooh!

Careful, Sege.

-And it's over.

-While these two are playing around in the garden,

I want to find out from Mum and Stepdad

out why this den is so important for Will.

We've seen a little bit about how much Will loves his rugby.

But how much really does he love his rugby?

Oh, he adores his rugby.

Whenever I take him to watch the rugby, he's up, he's ready.

He loves rugby, just absolutely adores it.

Take us back to the beginning a little bit.

When did we first find out that Will wasn't well?

So, Will was diagnosed in November, 2015.

And they diagnosed him with something called

Langerhans cell histiocytosis

and very soon after that Christmas Eve

we were told that he would need chemotherapy for a year.

-Ugh...

-And the only thing that he could think about, though, is,

"Well, I might not be able to play rugby."

That was his immediate reaction.

So, what has the sort of Year Two

been like for Will, since the diagnosis?

I think the hardest thing for him is that he hasn't been able to be on

the pitch for a long time now, so

he's desperate to get back to playing rugby

and being with his friends.

So, this going to be amazing for him because it's really going

to help him bond back with his friends.

So, ultimately, this den is going to be just something really,

really special, something he really, really deserves, I think.

-Absolutely.

-Absolutely.

While the build carries on,

I'm taking Will for a surprise I know he'll love.

I've brought him here to Twickenham, the home of England rugby,

for an extra special training session.

Will, welcome to Twickenham Stadium.

This is unbelievable.

-What do you think?

-It's the most beautiful sight ever.

And today, I have organised a pitch-side work-out.

But to do that, we're going to need to limber up.

As Will is allowed some basic training,

we needed someone very special to get him back into the game.

All right, Will, I am feeling ready to go.

The only problem is, I have, like, no rugby skills whatsoever.

So, I feel like we need maybe a bit of help.

Maybe a bit of professional help.

Maybe a bit of help from this guy.

-Oh, my...

-Hello, mate.

Nice to meet you. Will, you OK?

-Yeah.

-Having a good day?

-Yeah.

Did you expect to see me here?

No? We're going to do a bit of training.

Jack Nowell is a rugby union superstar who plays for England,

as well as Will's favourite team, the Exeter Chiefs.

The first drill we're going to do is a bit of a two on one drill, so,

a bit of passing, a bit of running at the same time.

Me and Will are going to be as a team

and you've got to try and stop us.

-I've got to try and stop the professional rugby players?

-Yes.

Great! Good plan!

So, on my clap, we're going to go at the same time

and you've got to do all you can to stop us.

Let's go, Will.

OK.

No!

So annoying!

That was too easy. That was so annoying.

-Right, Will's go.

-Time to switch.

It's my turn to team up with Jack.

Here we go.

-Yeah!

-Score!

Great tackle!

Playing with Jack is literally a dream come true.

-This is the one...

-Backwards, yes!

It's insane, to actually meet him.

Let alone play rugby with him.

Next up, tackling.

And Will's going to show me how it's done.

On the clap, we're going to get up.

Let's go. As quick as we can.

See that? Perfect.

Will shoulders nice and low, head in nice and tight,

wrap the arms, perfect tackle.

Now, it's my turn.

-How hard can it be?

-As hard as you can, ready?

No!

-Go!

-Argh!

-That was my best one.

-That was better.

-A lot quicker.

-What a day this has turned out to be.

That is actual Jack Nowell,

who plays for England and Will is absolutely loving it.

-So good!

-He's good, isn't he?

I've really enjoyed today, I think it's been awesome.

To be able to show Will a little bit of insight to what we do as a

professional rugby player is something I love doing.

Jack, thank you so much for today. We've had such a good time.

You're very welcome. It's been a good day.

The sun's been out shining.

Really, it's been amazing. Thank you both!

It's been like the best day ever.

You're very welcome. You've definitely got the skills as well.

So, we have to head back to your den I think,

-then, Will, what do you reckon?

-Yeah.

Before you do go, though, I've actually got you a present.

I've actually got you a signed England shirt, to be hung up,

signed by our coach,

Eddie Jones, and there's a little message there from me as well.

Thank you so much for the day, it's been amazing.

Good man, I'm glad you enjoyed it and you're very welcome.

Back at the build, despite them pushing really hard,

the team haven't really recovered from yesterday's setback.

We've not even managed to get halfway with the den.

It's still very white.

It needs to have a lot more colour on it.

I'm really, really worried that we're not going to make this one.

With the start of a new day,

the Dengineers are all revved up to get this den done in time.

There is loads to do today.

We've got painting, we've got door hanging,

we've got goalposts to go up,

laces, windows. There is a lot to do.

-What do you think then, Will?

-I think it looks absolutely awesome.

-It is, it's going to look really good, isn't it?

-Yeah.

With all the panels out, there is now light flowing into the den.

But the inside still needs work and

Sege has one accessory that will make it nice and cosy.

Right, Will. This is one of my favourite bits now.

I think I've had a bit of a cool idea here.

I'm going to make some cushions for the inside of your den.

OK? Now, what I thought we'd do is use some rugby shirts.

Now, Alex, behind us there has helped me out a lot.

She's sewn up the arms for us already,

And the bottoms. So, I've got one here for you too.

-Are you up for it?

-Yeah.

-OK, good. Before we fill it,

I think the best thing we can do now is decorate it.

I've got this fantastic Dengineers logo.

What we do..

peel the backing off, let's get this down on there,

take the magic iron, add some heat, and gently iron over the top.

It's always a good idea to get an adult to help with this part.

Now, it's a simple peel away.

And look at that. Printing our very own rugby shirts.

-Yeah.

-How cool's that?

And, to give it that authentic look,

you can add your favourite number on the back too.

-OK, so you want to go with number eight?

-Yeah.

-Line it up.

-Are you happy with that?

-Yeah.

Back to the heat. Watch your fingers.

That's it, keeping the iron on it all the time.

That's really, really good.

Ha! Well done, mate.

That's fantastic!

All we have to do now is stuff them.

OK? So, there's your bag, here's mine.

So, the more fill we put in them, the better they're going to be.

Let's just get stuffing away.

The next time we'll see these cushions will be in the den.

Back at the build, the den is really coming on.

But how exactly has Sege made something this shape this big?

Will's massive rugby ball needed to use some clever engineering.

It's a very impressive structure and I just wondered how you go about

making something like that?

Well, Joe, dead easy.

OK. What we do is we get some

big sheets of plywood and we cut them out

into little circles, rather like this model here.

So, you sort of make a skeleton of a ball?

-Exactly that.

-And where do you go from there?

What you have to do then is you have to cover it over with thin strips of

wood. What I've done is I've demonstrated that by using tape.

So, now you can see that once the tape's over there,

you now have a shaped developing.

It is the basis of that wall.

-Exactly.

-OK.

-What this shows now is that we have the basis for the

-fibreglass.

-What is fibreglass?

I've got a bit here. Fibreglass is actually woven plastic.

Right. And its woven with glass fibres,

going in all different directions,

to give it strength, you see.

Sege has layered the wooden

structure with large sheets of fibreglass and

used resin to glue it down.

The fibreglass and resin bond

together like a huge plaster cast to make

the den waterproof, strong but also light in weight.

And the fibreglass is also very flexible,

which means it's perfect for boats,

water slides and even a rugby ball den.

Right, time for a Sege demo.

It's as simple as this.

Now, this is my favourite bit.

-Yeah.

-Now, what we do is the brush and we just stick it all down.

Amazing! And then you cover the whole thing just like that.

And you cover the whole thing. There we go.

-Can you see it all starting to stick?

-Got you!

I'm surprised that something that flimsy is actually

strong enough to make it that hard?

That's what makes fibreglass so good.

Now, I'll show you one that I've already made and you'll see exactly

how strong that is.

-Look, it's like a cocoon!

-Isn't that fantastic?

You actually bang that, you bang that hard. Look.

-It hurts, doesn't it?

-Yeah, I regret that.

And that's the beauty about fibreglass.

Will and the team have been working their socks off

on the finer details.

The lighting is sorted and finally the internal decorating has begun.

The den's going to look absolutely amazing

when Sege has fully finished it.

But the next time Will's going to

see his den is that the big reveal tomorrow.

Will, mate, you've been great over the last couple of days.

You've been a great help but I think now it's time for you to go.

So, gloves, please. Thank you very much.

Today's gone really, really well.

Everybody's come together. We've all mucked in.

We've got loads done.

But even though the den is looking almost complete on the outside,

there's still a huge amount of work to be done on the inside and time is

running out.

It's Reveal Day and we need all hands on deck if we've any chance of

getting this den finished.

So, Joe and I get stuck in with some of the finishing touches.

And we need to get a move on as Will's family

and friends have started to arrive.

With one last push to the finish line,

a quick sweep of the soil and a vacuum of the grass,

we're done.

This corner of the garden used to be home to the family's junk.

But Sege and the Dengineers team

have transformed it into an awesome space fit for a rugby fanatic.

Everybody, are you ready to see the den?

AUDIENCE: Yes! In three, two, one...

Yo-ho!

Wow! Will, what do you think about that?

It's amazing!

-What do you think, Mum and Dad?

-It's immense.

-But it's awesome.

-It's bigger than the front room, innit?

Cleverly using the Exeter Chiefs' colours,

Sege has given the den a striking appearance.

That looks awesome.

And on the inside, it gets even better.

Oh, my gosh.

-What do you think?

-It's awesome!

Yeah? You've got your telly here,

you can watch all your rugby on there.

You've got your tactics board, so you can sit in here

with your friends.

Cupboards disguised as goalposts at either end of the den and fake grass

flooring all get the den the look of a rugby pitch.

And not forgetting the upcycled T-shirt cushions.

We've got our den day out photo.

Up there, with your hero, the one, the only, Jack Nowell.

And we've got this shirt down here as well, of course.

-How's that?

-It's awesome.

When I first saw my den, I thought it was absolutely amazing.

The colours and all the structure was absolutely phenomenal.

Shall we get your friends and family and everybody else to come and have

-a little look?

-Yeah.

-Mum!

-Dad!

-All right, everyone!

Family! Come on in, guys.

Get yourself in there.

-That's it, get in.

-That is amazing!

Sege has done his job.

Where is Sege? That's amazing, mate, brilliant.

Thank you. Glad you like it.

-Fantastic.

-This actually is so nice.

The den has gone down a treat with everyone.

I think Will does deserve this den because it's been like

a really hard year for him and he really loves rugby,

so I'm sure he'll be watching a couple of rugby matches in there.

So, what do you reckon, Will? Are you happy with this den?

I am very happy. Thank you so much for this.

It's so amazing.

Let's have it, mate...

And after that, there's just one thing left to do.

CROWD: This den is done! Whoo!