Hot on the heels of the news that Phil Dollman has extended his Exeter Chiefs contract, the announcement that five key members of the coaching team have followed suit is fantastic for the club's supporters.
The Chiefs have been on the up and up since Rob Baxter was promoted to head coach in May 2009.
One of his first tasks was to bring in Ali Hepher as his assistant and together they guided the club to promotion to the top flight at the first attempt.
Ricky Pellow has taken on more responsibility from his role with the club's academy over recent years, with Rob Hunter joining in April 2013 to take over responsibility for coaching the forwards from Baxter.
Mark Twiggs has been with the club since 2008 but stepped up to run the strength and conditioning team in May 2012 following the departures of Paddy Anson and Dave Silvester.
Together the quintet have taken the club to new heights, with last season's LV= Cup win the main highlight from the past 19 months.
They have carried that on this term, with all the areas the coaches take responsibility for clearly improving from last season. The defence, which Baxter takes charge of, has been miserly this campaign – only Northampton have conceded fewer points than Exeter in the Premiership this season.
The attack, where Hepher comes into his own, has seen the Chiefs score more points than any other side in the first eight games.
The forwards have proved a match for any pack, with the scrum – which creaked a few times last season – shored up and more of a weapon this term.
The skills work that Pellow does has been paying off with the offloading game working well to aid the attacking game plan.
And the high-tempo way the Chiefs are playing requires the players to be in tip-top condition, so Twiggs and his team of fitness coaches are clearly earning their corn.
With an average age of just 39, there is no reason why the group cannot go on to have a lot more success in years to come as they learn more as they go on.
They are dealing with having more players away on international duty than ever before – seven have trained with or played for their country over the past month – and being able to manage the squad accordingly.
And if the form of the first eight games is replicated across the remaining 14 matches of the league season, the Sandy Park outfit will find themselves back in Europe's top tier next term, which will bring more challenges for the coaching team to learn from.
All the signs are very promising right now.
However, another test lies in store this weekend as Saracens – well used to being in the mix come the business end of the season – arrive in Exeter.
Matches between Mark McCall's side and the Chiefs in Devon have been very tight in the past three seasons.
After a 33-12 win for the visitors in the 2010/11 season – making amends for Exeter's thrilling win at Vicarage Road – there has not been more than a score between the sides since at Sandy Park.
Another close contest is expected this weekend as the teams battle to be as high in the table as possible ahead of the break for European action.
Such has been the success so far this season that the Chiefs are guaranteed to be in the top four after this weekend, while Sarries could drop out if they lose depending on other results.
Who would have thought that would be the scenario a season or two ago?
Baxter and his colleagues clearly deserve their new three-year deals.
