Don't expect any preferential treatment to established players within the Chiefs Super Rugby Aotearoa squad.
With eight games in 10 weeks and a potential All Blacks schedule just around the corner, there could be a temptation for those with international ambitions to push their case for automatic selection every week.
But that's not how the Chiefs see things.
Assistant coach Neil Barnes wants his charges firing every week, and a competitive squad environment is the best way to achieve that.
Warren Gatland made more personal changes through the opening month of Super Rugby earlier this year, and still yielded four wins from six games.
Barnes says regardless of your name or amount of All Blacks test caps, if you don't put in the hard work on the training park, someone who is, will take your spot.
"We are not afraid to play anyone from within our 38-man squad," Barnes said.
"If someone performs in training and shows that desire that they want to play on the weekend, then we will reward that.
"We definitely don't have any player that has to be on the park every week.
"We are not afraid to make those types of decisions."
The Chiefs open their revamped Super Rugby campaign on June 13 when they head to Dunedin to take on the Highlanders.
With the points slate wiped clean, results earlier in the year mean nothing. But despite having their good start scrapped from the record books due to COVID-19, Barnes can see a silver lining in the four-week build-up to the start of the new competition.
"The pleasing thing is we have the whole squad together, whereas in the pore-season you are without a lot of your internationals for most of it.
"You are able to address a lot of the small details and have everyone on the same page when we come together on game day."
Lockdown was spent in familiar settings for Barnes who owns a farm in the Taranaki region.
Getting back to early morning wake-ups and 14 hours days provided a nice break from rugby for Barnes, who even found himself questioning if he should come back.
"I've been on a farm for seven weeks during lockdown not thinking too much about rugby.
"I was actually wondering why I did rugby coaching because I enjoy farming so much, but when you get with the boys and get stuck into your work, it reminds you how much of a privilege it is to be involved with a team like this."
And that team will certainly be an early favourite for Super Rugby Aoeteroa if they can turn over the Highlanders in two weeks.
