The Oceania qualifying tournament for the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup begins this Friday, Oct. 9 and runs until Oct. 17, in Auckland, New Zealand, as six nations will compete for one berth to the United States next summer. The smallest of FIFA’s six Confederations, Oceania will send only its tournament champion to the USA. All matches will take place at Mt. Smart Stadium. The competition features two groups of three teams each: Group A will feature New Zealand, Samoa and Fiji while Group B is comprised of Australia, Papua New Guinea and American Samoa. New Zealand and Australia are heavy favorites to meet in the championship game. Australia was Oceania’s representative to the 1995 FIFA Women’s World Cup and held a 1-0 lead over the USA in a first-round match before falling 4-1. The Matildas finished last in the tournament, but bolstered by the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, have dedicated increased resources to their women’s soccer program for its Women’s World Cup run this year. The Australian team has been training together in a full-time residency camp in Canberra since July 1. New Zealand recorded one of the biggest victories in its history back in 1991, defeating Australia in qualifying to earn a berth in the inaugural 1991 Women’s World Cup, but finished at the bottom of a tough Group A that featured China, Norway and Denmark. The Kiwis scored their only goal in a 4-1 loss to the Chinese, but finished 11th in the tournament, in front of Japan. Following is the schedule for the 1999 Oceania Qualifying Tournament: