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1998 Oceania WWC Qualifying Review
And The Band Played ‘Waltzing Matilda’ ... Again!
by Jeremy Ruane
It was almost inevitable that the Oceania qualifying series for the 1999 Women’s World Cup Finals, held in Auckland, New Zealand, between October 9 and 17, 1998, would end up in a showdown between the leading women’s soccer-playing nations in the Confederation, namely the host nation and Australia.
The tournament draw pointed to it, as did history. In the previous two qualifying series, the Oceania representative at the Women’s World Cup Finals was determined by which of the two nations scored more goals against Papua New Guinea in the respective qualifying series.
In 1991, that honour went the way of the SWANZ, the nickname by which the New Zealand women’s team is known. Four years later, and it was the Matildas of Australia who found the net more often to represent the region at the Second World Championship of Women’s Football.
This time round, however, the equation was far more complicated, thankfully made so by the entry of three nations new to the world of Women’s World Cup soccer, if not to the soccer world as a whole.
American Samoa, Fiji and Samoa are the welcome newcomers, their arrival on the world scene boosting the numbers of women’s soccer-playing nations to 95 and counting, out of the global total of 204 countries and republics which play the world’s greatest game.
Incidentally, when either of these figures is compared with the 76 nations who play New Zealand’s national sport, rugby, you begin to wonder how those members of the local media in positions of great influence come to regard soccer generally, never mind women’s soccer, as a “minority sport”. The battle against oval-ball myopia in this small corner of the world continues ....
The new entries meant that, for the first time ever, the winner of the Oceania qualifying series would be determined on a knock-out basis, after round-robin play in two groups of three had determined the four semi-finalists.
The draw put Fiji and Samoa in Group A, along with the host nation. Australia, whose long-term goal is a successful
showing on home soil at the Sydney 2000 Olympics, were expected to top Group B, ahead of Papua New Guinea and American Samoa.
Come opening day, October 9, and the world record score for women’s soccer was equalled not once, but twice!! Australia, as the tournament’s cup holders, were given
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the honour of getting the 1998 qualification series under way, and duly fired a twenty-one gun salute in appreciation of the fact!!
American Samoa were their unfortunate opponents, but despite letting in 21 goals, goalkeeper Lealofi Hollins produced many a memorable save to thwart the Matildas’ attempts to break the record set by China in 1995, and since equalled by Japan (’97) and Canada (’98).
The later game showed that New Zealand were intent on matching their trans-tasman rivals stride for stride, as Samoa were stylishly blitzed 21-0 by the SWANZ, for whom Pernille Andersen set an individual scoring record in a New Zealand women’s soccer international by bagging six goals.
As well as equalling the world record scoreline, the opening day results enhanced the celebrations of three stars of the tournament in particular.
Australia’s Sarah Cooper turned 29 the day before the tournament began, while the Matildas’ most experienced international, Anissa Tann-Darby, clocked up birthday number 31 the day after the start of the event. New Zealand’s Michele Cox, meanwhile, couldn’t have wished for a better way to celebrate the big three-o on the day itself!!
The second day of action saw Fiji make their international women’s soccer debut, and they restricted the SWANZ to a 14-0 triumph, as the host nation qualified for the semi-finals. Half of this tally, however, was struck by Andersen, thus shattering the record she had set just two days before!
Australia couldn’t match the host nation in the scoring stakes in the later game - not surprising, given the inclement weather in which this match was played! - but still found the net four times in each half against Papua New Guinea to guarantee a place in the last four.
Day three pitted Fiji against Samoa. The Fijians emerged triumphant, 5-0, to secure a semi-final against Australia. Losana Kubulala had the honour of scoring Fiji’s first goal in Women’s World Cup soccer, as did Papua New Guinea’s Nellie Taman in the later game, as she led her side to a 9-0
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win over American Samoa, and a semi-final clash with the SWANZ.
The Matildas should have broken the world record scoreline in their semi, but their finishing against Fiji was, at times, woeful. In the end, 17-0 was their lot, but that was still twelve more than the SWANZ amassed against Papua New Guinea in the other encounter, thus setting up the final everybody had been anticipating - New Zealand versus Australia.
Before it, though, was the third place play-off, a match won 7-1 by Papua New Guinea over Fiji, who, despite their inexperience at international level, showed that, given time, regular match-play and greater recognition within their own nation, , they will prove challenging opposition in future Oceania qualifying series.
So to the final, played before a crowd of 2000, the biggest gathering seen at Mt. Smart Stadium’s second pitch to watch either a men’s or women’s soccer match!!
The game was as good as over inside the first thirteen minutes. In that time, Julie Murray, on her fiftieth appearance for Australia, and Bridgette Starr struck to give the Matildas a 2-0 lead over a suitably shell-shocked SWANZ combination.
The host nation battled to get back into the match, but Lisa Casagrande’s 66th minute effort proved a bridge too far for NZ, for whom eighteen-year-old Nicky Smith struck thirteen minutes from time to offer a semblance of respectability to the final 3-1 scoreline.
But not even receiving the tournament’s Fair Play Trophy could console the SWANZ in the finish, the prize they had worked towards achieving for over a year snatched from them by their arch-rivals, for whom the final, in the end, meant so much more than just qualifying for USA ‘99 - a further funding boost was also riding on the outcome.
So while New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Samoa and American Samoa began plotting their course to reach the Women’s World Cup Finals of 2003, wherever they are to be held, Australia head to USA ‘99, with the best wishes of the Oceania Football Confederation and its member nations behind them as they bid to improve upon their twelfth (of twelve) placing in Sweden four years ago.
After the qualifying series in Port Moresby in 1994, they were the premier nation in Oceania women’s soccer circles. And at the conclusion of the Auckland tournament four years on, the band was playing ‘Waltzing Matilda’ ... again!
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