KEY POINTS:
Neutral venues might be okay for the All Blacks but the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) remains opposed to Super 14 games being played off-shore.
But for a change of heart by Stormers coach Rassie Erasmus, the Crusaders would have made their way to Perth last week from London rather than Cape Town.
The Stormers had proposed playing their round-three clash at Twickenham and the venue was approved until Erasmus decided he didn't want to concede home advantage.
It was believed that other franchises were planning similar offshore ventures with the Crusaders keen on taking a game to Melbourne.
Their hopes were raised in July last year when the Herald on Sunday revealed that John O'Neill's first act back in the Australian Rugby Union hot seat was to persuade New Zealand to soften their stance on playing games outside the Sanzar nations.
It was only a partial softening, though, as the NZRU is happy for its teams to play 'away' games at neutral venues but reluctant to see home games hosted outside New Zealand.
Professional rugby manager Neil Sorenson, said: "We agreed to a game between the Stormers and Crusaders to be played in London this year. We were happy to do that because we didn't have to consider the wider stakeholders supporting the Crusaders and what it would mean for the catering suppliers, season ticket holders and sponsors to miss hosting a game.
"Say the Hurricanes wanted to play in Tokyo, it's just something that has not been discussed. We would be guided by the franchise board as they know their key relationships.
"But it is not something we are hoping to see as a trend. Franchise rugby is very important to us and we want home games to be played in New Zealand. We want young New Zealanders to be in the crowd."
The Crusaders did play a pre-season game in Melbourne this year but only just broke even.
There does appear, however, to be a strong appetite among South African and Australian sides to travel the world and reports last week suggest the Force could play a post-season game in Dubai next year.
