(Reuters) New Zealand Rugby Football Union chief executive David Rutherford said the door was not closed on New Zealand but issues remained with requirements for grounds to be totally free of signage and pre-sold seating.
"It's not a lost cause and we're grateful for the first official recognition that it's the IRB council that is going to make this decision," Rutherford stated.
The Australian Rugby Union, which had withdrawn an earlier invitation for New Zealand to co-host the World Cup, on Tuesday presented their case to the board of Rugby World Cup Ltd (RWCL) in Wales and said the plan had been well-received.
"I think it has gone very well. I am quietly confident," ARU chief executive John O'Neill said after the meeting.
The International Rugby Board (IRB), rugby's world governing body, said a final decision on staging the World Cup would be made at a meeting of the IRB's council in Dublin on April 12.
Rutherford said problems remained over RWCL's demands that all venues were clean of pre-booked advertising and seating.
"We can deliver what we believe is enough to meet all the V.I.P. and sponsorship requirements but there is the RWC requirement for more than that and it would appear we can't do that so that's still a sticking point for us."
Rutherford said Rob Fisher, a director of both the NZRFU and RWCL had attended the meeting but did not put New Zealand's case forward and had absented himself during part of the ARFU presentation.
"He took...a status report on each of our stadia on what we can deliver. We've made absolutely extraordinary progress in the last 10 days or so on a couple of the criteria.
"(But) we are very clearly saying that New Zealand is in exactly the same position we were on March 8 in not being able to deliver in the hospitality suites and corporate boxes."
