Pierre Spies, once considered by many to be the perfect rugby specimen, seems to have brought the Hulk back into his performances, to the delight of Bulls coach Frans Ludeke. The Bulls captain, who earned his name by displaying a wondrous combination of muscle and speed, seems to have regained what made him the most feared eighth man in rugby.It wasn't enough to earn the Bulls a win in the cliffhanger at Ellis Park last Saturday - which the Lions won 22-18 through a try in the dying minutes by Armand van der Merwe - but there was enough to draw confidence from, ahead of Saturday's visit of the Reds.Spies beat five defenders in the game against the Lions with his 11 ball-carries and made no handling errors, which is quite a feat considering the heavy downpour during the game."It definitely helps the team that Spies is performing the way he has been," said Ludeke."He was out for [almost] two years if you think about it. He is leading by example, making it very easy to follow him as the captain."His leadership also helped us turn the season around as he would talk to the team at vital stages. Spies has also made good calls on the field in recent weeks and has led impeccably."Last year Spies played just 56 minutes of Super rugby and had his last full competition in 2013, before a biceps injury put paid to his season. You have to go back almost half a decade to recall the last time Spies did some real damage on a rugby field.But he has been the spearhead of the Bulls' resurgent run of late. They have beaten the Crusaders, Western Force, Cheetahs and the Sharks in the last four weeks to mitigate the damage caused by their opening two defeats.It is also no secret that Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer is a fan of Spies because of what he offers in terms of ball-carrying and lineout takes.Ludeke said after the loss to the Lions they were on the right track, but admitted to being hurt by the loss in Johannesburg, as it would have put them on the perfect runway to fly off with the SA conference lead."At the beginning of the season we had a lot of players who had come back from long-term injuries and hadn't had a good pre-season," he said."About seven of those were in the starting lineup against the Stormers and they were still trying to find their feet and trying to play themselves in."That is why things are going slightly better for us."It is a pity that we couldn't continue our winning run on Saturday night," he said...