Rob Baxter says he will not be resting any of his Exeter Chiefs players against Leicester Tigers in the Aviva Premiership this weekend – as his side will be giving it their all.

Some pundits believe the Sandy Park outfit should target certain games and rest their key players in other matches to save them from injury. Head coach Baxter does not subscribe to that philosophy, however, and will send his troops out at Welford Road on Saturday hoping they give a good account of themselves.

He believes the only way the Chiefs are going to improve is by taking on the likes of the reigning Premiership champions. The temptation would be to rest certain players this weekend so that they are fresh for the visit of Newcastle Falcons – one of the sides expected to struggle this term – the following weekend.

"I'm not going to suddenly start changing things now," Baxter said. "I said before the start of the season that we were going to hunt games, that we were going to look to perform as best we could in every game. That's what we need to do to improve ourselves as a side and as individual players.

"We've won a home game and people are saying what we should do now is wrap everyone in cotton wool for the Leicester game and give ourselves the best chance running into another home game [against Newcastle].

"I understand that viewpoint a little bit, but is that going to improve us as a side on a week-by-week basis? I don't think it will. I think what will improve us is meeting challenges head on.

"Yes, you are running the risk of getting injuries, but you run that risk every day in training.

"That's how we have to approach it this year. That may be being naive and we may start breaking players, but we've got a decent squad here and we've got to back those guys to be able to step in and perform for us in any game."

Baxter said Monday night's 13-9 win for Exeter United over their Bath counterparts had made selection difficult this week. But he said the same rules apply as always – if players are performing well in matches and in training, they will be picked.

"Several guys performed really well," Baxter said, referring to Monday's match. "There's no miracle to selection, if guys play well and train well you select them.

"I like to say to the players they pick the side, really, and I think that's still true.

"If you go out and perform well, show me you want to play the following week and you show me in training you want to play the next week, you'll be selected. It's pretty simple."

Baxter revealed that he is hopeful Garrick Cowley will be fit to face Leicester.

The scrum-half took a knock on his shoulder and was withdrawn after just 12 minutes on Monday. However, Baxter said the substitution was just precautionary, and he is hoping for good news when he receives the results of a scan on Cowley's injury.

The Sandy Park chief said: "We hope he will be fine for the weekend. We are having a good look at it and Garrick is having a full assessment on it before we make a decision."

An injury for Cowley would make Haydn Thomas the Chiefs' only specialist scrum-half available for the trip to Welford Road. But there is more positive news for the Sandy Park outfit's other number nine, Junior Poluleuligaga.

The new signing's hamstring injury has not proved as serious as the Chiefs feared, and Baxter believes the Samoan international may be fit to play again later this month.

"Junior's injury is not as bad as we first thought, it may be that in a couple of weeks he'll be close to playing," Baxter added.

"Other than that, we don't have too many injuries to worry about. We obviously got knocked around on Saturday but everyone seems OK."