CHRIS Bentley says Exeter Chiefs' coaches are mixing the training sessions up to keep the players on their toes.

In the first two weeks of pre-season they have already had a couple of sessions on Exmouth beach as well as going to Dartmoor with the Royal Marines.

The fitness work has also been mixed in with rugby sessions as they start the build up to the opening game at Moseley on September 5.

Lock Bentley said the players are enjoying training because of the variety.

"I always use the terminology it's like monkeys in a zoo," he said. "The keepers have to keep changing the atmosphere to keep them entertained.

"It's the same with us, the coaches have to keep mixing things up to keep us interested.

"One of the great things I've always had at Exeter Chiefs is that it's always been fresh, there's never been a real monotony in training.

"You come to training with a smile on your face because you're doing new things.

"This pre-season on the beach we've been doing a lot of physical work. The big boys are usually exposed because we're doing a lot of running, but we're getting to grapple with each other so our strengths are coming to the fore, which is brilliant."

Bentley, 30, said new head coach Rob Baxter has set about instilling a winning mentality within the camp by laying down a few ground rules.

That revolves around doing things the right way at all times, and Bentley is a big fan of that plan.

"Last season we spent a lot of time building a culture through words," he said. "This year Rob's said we're going to do it through the way we behave.

"I'm buying into that more than I did before because it's about what we do rather than what we say.

"We have been guilty in the past at Exeter, me included, of talking things up massively and then unfortunately not delivering.

"Hopefully we can get our heads down, work hard and something special can happen."