Australia and New Zealand advanced to Saturday's final of the Oceania World Cup Qualifiers with comfortable semi-finals wins this evening in Auckland.
The Matildas defeated a physical Fiji 17-0 in blustery conditions, the task made easier with two Fijians sent off in the first half. Midfielder Joanne Peters was the Aussies' top scorer with four stunning second-half goals, with Julie Murray and Sharon Black each recording hattricks. Murray gave the Matildas the lead in the 3rd minute in what was her first game of the tournament following injury.
Fiji were setback with dismissals to defenders in the 18th and 43rd minutes of play.
"This has been the worst possible preparation going into such a tough final," said National Coach Greg Brown. "We needed good opposition and they weren't able to provide it. They were a bad team to start off with, but then with the two sent off, it made it into a hopeless exercise from our point of view."
Saturday's do-or-die final will decide Oceania's sole representative at the 1999 World Cup in the USA, and the Kiwis will go all out to upset the Matildas as favourites.