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Cape Town - All Black and Crusaders scrumhalf Andy Ellis has taken note of the Bulls' impressive win over the Blues as his side prepares to face the men from Pretoria on Saturday.
The Bulls beat the Blues 28-21 to notch their first ever win at Eden Park in Auckland on Sunday. They are unbeaten after three games, leading the South African conference while only trailing the Brumbies on the overall log.
The Bulls also have a dismal away record against the Crusaders, winning only in the first year of the competition (1996) when they were known as Northern Transvaal, but Ellis believes their confidence will be buoyed by the Eden park result.
And with the Crusaders yet to register a win this year, Pierre Spies's men will fancy their chances.
"They'll be up for it and will be very passionate. There is a great rivalry between the Bulls and the Crusaders (between them they have won 10 Super titles) and they'll bring a lot of excitement and physical power which we haven't come up against yet," Ellis told the sportal.co.nz website.
"They played like they were at Loftus. They ran hard and they were intense. They were impressive and scored some exciting tries and are a very clinical and disciplined side."
After losing their first two away matches (against the Blues and Hurricanes), the Crusaders know the importance of winning at home.
"We're not too concerned as it's a long competition and you don't want to be playing your best footy yet," Ellis said. "But you've got to be winning and gaining points to be up at the top and we just have to build and get some points on the board."
The clash in Christchurch kicks off at 08:35 (SA time) on Saturday.
The Bulls beat the Blues 28-21 to notch their first ever win at Eden Park in Auckland on Sunday. They are unbeaten after three games, leading the South African conference while only trailing the Brumbies on the overall log.
The Bulls also have a dismal away record against the Crusaders, winning only in the first year of the competition (1996) when they were known as Northern Transvaal, but Ellis believes their confidence will be buoyed by the Eden park result.
And with the Crusaders yet to register a win this year, Pierre Spies's men will fancy their chances.
"They'll be up for it and will be very passionate. There is a great rivalry between the Bulls and the Crusaders (between them they have won 10 Super titles) and they'll bring a lot of excitement and physical power which we haven't come up against yet," Ellis told the sportal.co.nz website.
"They played like they were at Loftus. They ran hard and they were intense. They were impressive and scored some exciting tries and are a very clinical and disciplined side."
After losing their first two away matches (against the Blues and Hurricanes), the Crusaders know the importance of winning at home.
"We're not too concerned as it's a long competition and you don't want to be playing your best footy yet," Ellis said. "But you've got to be winning and gaining points to be up at the top and we just have to build and get some points on the board."
The clash in Christchurch kicks off at 08:35 (SA time) on Saturday.
