Cheetahs v Crusaders: Teams

McCaw: Captains the Crusaders in Bloemfontein

The Crusaders will look to make it two from two in South Africa with a win against the Cheetahs on Saturday, before returning home.

Another victory for the Kiwi outfit will be their third on the trot and if the Blues lose in Brisbane, Todd Blackadder's team will take over as New Zealand Conference leaders.

While the seven-time champions might be considered favourites in Bloemfontein, the hosts will not lose any sleep as they look back to 2009 for inspiration when they won the same fixture 20-13.

The Crusaders will be hoping to avenge that result by securing their ninth victory of the competition.

The Cheetahs currently lie ninth on the overall log with 25 points - six points adrift of the Bulls in eighth - after bonus-point wins over the Brumbies and Lions.

Those wins, albeit against teams struggling for form, will give the Free Staters a massive confidence boost ahead of Saturday's match.

However, with the likes of Richie McCaw and Dan Carter back in business, the Cheetahs' task could well be made a whole lot tougher.

Cheetahs: 15 Riaan Viljoen, 14 Riaan Smit, 13 Robert Ebersohn, 12 Corne Uys, 11 Rayno Benjamin, 10 Sias Ebersohn, 9 Sarel Pretorius, 8 Davon Raubenheimer, 7 Ashley Johnson, 6 Heinrich Brussow, 5 Wilhelm Steenkamp, 4 Francois Uys, 3 WP Nel, 2 Adriaan Strauss (capt), 1 Coenie Oosthuizen.
Replacements: 16 Ryno Barnes, 17 Lourens Adriaanse, 18 Waltie Vermeulen, 19 Kabamba Floors, 20 Tewis de Bruyn, 21 Naas Olivier, 22 Hennie Daniller.

Crusaders: 15 Tom Marshall, 14 Robbie Fruean, 13 Ryan Crotty, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 Zac Guildford, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Willi Heinz, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (capt), 6 George Whitelock, 5 Chris Jack, 4 Luke Romano, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Corey Flynn, 1 Ben Franks.
Replacements: 16 Quentin MacDonald, 17 Wyatt Crockett, 18 Joe Wheeler, 19 Matt Todd, 20 Steve Alfeld, 21 Matt Berquist, 22 Brent Ward.