After losing to the hosts (Australia) 3–0 in their first game, they defeated the Cook Islands 3–1 to secure a semi-final spot where they fell to New Zealand by a single goal. This put them into the third-place playoff where they defeated Tahiti for their best result to date at the OFC Nations Cup with a third-place. Esala Masi was the top goalscorer for the tournament with three goals. Fiji qualified for the following edition of the Nations Cup after winning the title at the 2000 Melanesia Cup in Fiji. But later that year, Fiji withdrew because of political unrest in the country, which led to the 2000 Fijian coup d'état.