WORCESTER Warriors centre Ryan Mills believes a “strong team bond” can be more important “than buying in world-class players”.

The Exeter-born player admits going though “tough times in the Championship” can help strengthen a team’s resolve.

Mills cut his rugby teeth at Exeter and has cast admiring eyes at the Chiefs blueprint.

Exeter head coach Rob Baxter has guided Chiefs from Championship winners to Premiership title-chasers in five years.

“Historically, clubs buy in a whole new team when they come into the Premiership because that’s what they think they need to do,” said Mills.

“Perhaps, sometimes, you actually need the bond you create when you’ve been through tough times in the Championship.

“Exeter had a strong team bond coming into the Premiership and sometimes that’s more important than buying in world-class players.

“You need experience in the Premiership and we’ve added to our group with key players but the majority of our group we’ve kept from the Championship.

“When you’ve had a season together in the Championship you forge relationships and are willing to work with each other. Exeter did that well and we have tried to replicate that.”

Mills, 23, has played 18 times for Warriors in the Premiership this term but missed their 50-12 defeat to Exeter at Sandy Park.

“It’s been a different kind of challenge,” said Mills. “It has been a long season with not many breaks in between.

“It’s been tough but we have changed how much we’ve trained and done more detail work at times.”

Mills believes Warriors have made good progress this term as they prepare for Saturday’s Midlands derby against third-placed Wasps at Sixways (3pm).

“If you look back at the Wasps game earlier in the year, we controlled it for 70 minutes and then in the last 10 minutes ended up losing,” said Mills.

“Throughout the 70 minutes, we played without our first and second-choice 10 and were still winning against a side in third who reached a European Champions Cup semi-final.

“If you look at that, you would say we did pretty well without some of our key players.

“I understand the frustration from some of our fans but when you take things into perspective we have done pretty well this season but, as players, we always expect more of ourselves.”