The Storm opted to sell their home game to Napier, and the two clubs will battle it out in the North Island coastal city in New Zealand on Saturday.

The club's decision-makers could never have foreseen just how vital this game would be to both sides' finals chances.

The Storm could either end up in the top-four or outside the top-eight altogether, while the Dragons need to win to avoid the worst losing streak in the merger club's history.

It's essentially a must-win game for the two contenders.

As a Red V fan, you would have been within your rights to be filthy at the Storm for forcing your club to travel overseas when they normally would be flying south to Victoria.

Particularly when you factor in the trip to Wellington to play the Warriors in round 22, and the flight to Brisbane to take on the Broncos the following week.

But as it happens, moving the game across the ditch could prove the best thing for the Dragons' premiership aspirations.

St George Illawarra have a dismal record in Melbourne. They haven't won down there since 1999.

They do, however, hold an incredible record in New Zealand. Granted they have only ever played the Warriors over there, but it seems the Red V has a strange love affair with that patch of land across the Tasman.

The Warriors have won just four of their last 21 games against the Dragons.

Last time they met in New Zealand, it was the Dragons who claimed the chocolates, winning 31-12 at Eden Park.

Maybe it's the climate, or a weight off their shoulders by escaping the Australian media for a few days.

Whatever the reason, something about our neighbouring country brings out the best in St George Illawarra.

So when I asked coach Paul McGregor and a handful of Dragons players for their thoughts on the trip earlier this week, their answers probably weren't so surprising.

"Trips away, being around each other when you haven't been winning, getting tight is a really good thing," McGregor said. "The tighter the group the better you perform.

"It's hard logistically for this group because a lot of guys live in Caringbah, or north of the bridge, or in Wollongong.

"So they actually travel a couple of hours to train, some of these guys. To get them together, and on the road, is a really positive thing."

And if a little team bonding is what's needed to turn their form around, the Dragons should be looking forward to the coming month.

Two trips to New Zealand and one to Brisbane might be exactly what's needed to rediscover that mid-season form when the team won nine of 12 games.

"It does no harm to get away from home every now and then and just focus on football," English forward Mike Cooper said. "It's good to spend a bit of time together."

With six consecutive losses weighing them down, the maths is starting to stack up against the Dragons.

Realistically, four wins from their last seven games can get them into the top eight, but five wins will ensure a finals berth.

And after the season they've had, it would be harrowing to spend another year shy of finals football.