April Rookie of the Month Riley Tiernan Followed in Sister's Footsteps

When Riley Tiernan told her older sister, Madison, that she’d been invited for a preseason trial with Angel City, Madison had one piece of advice: “You go out there and break the door down,” she told AngelCity.com. “You show them you deserve it.”

With three goals on the season and April Rookie of the Month honors in hand, it’s clear Riley has done that emphatically.

Growing up, Riley, who is eight years Madison’s junior, was always watching her sister. “I think from the second she could walk, there was always a ball at her feet, because most of the time she was out on the sidelines watching me,” Madison remembers.

“She's been my role model my whole life,” says Riley. “We shared a room growing up. I just grew up watching her play all the time and got exposed to such a good environment at a young age. She taught me a lot.”

Riley followed in her sister’s footsteps from early on, playing for the same New Jersey club as her sister. “My parents like to say that they learned through her,” says Riley. “They found the right club and then I was lucky enough to go right into the club instead of them having to discover it.”

When Madison enrolled at Rutgers, the family went to all her home games, a formative experience for Riley. “I thought it was like, the World Cup every time I went,” she says. “My club team would go to a lot of games, and would I get to be like, ‘that's my sister out there.’ Just watching her play in a big stadium, which was something that I hadn’t seen before, was really cool.”

By the time Riley started thinking about college, it was a no-brainer: “it was always Rutgers,” she says.

Madison, by then, had retired from her professional career at then-Sky Blue FC (now NJ/NY Gotham FC) and become an assistant coach at her alma mater. Both had some apprehensions about that arrangement going in. “We weren’t sure what it would be like, because I didn't want it to look like there was favoritism,” says Madison. “But I think she came in right away and earned everything. Nothing was given to her just because I was on staff.”

Riley echoes that. “On the field, it was strictly business. She would yell at me if she had to, maybe even a little bit more than other people,” she laughs. “And then once we were off the field we were sisters again.”

Madison’s advice as her sister headed for her tryout with Angel City was nothing she hadn’t heard before. Both sisters take pride in, and have built much of their success on, what Madison calls a “hard, gritty, Jersey Girl energy.”

“I think that's something she hopefully picked up from me,” says Madison. “You're always the last one standing, you always work the hardest.”

That attitude, and the on-field characteristics that come with it, were a big part of what the Angel City coaching staff was looking for when they brought Riley in for preseason—and she didn’t disappoint.

“She has all the intangibles that Angel City is trying to build our foundation on,” said Technical Assistant Coach Mykell Bates. “Her work ethic is relentless, her defending is relentless. She's overwhelming, she’s strong, and she just has a presence about her.”

Even without the goals, Riley has made key contributions early in the season. She’s won possession 21 times, putting her in the top 10 in that statistic among forwards league-wide; seven of those were in the final third, a stat she’s tied for third among forwards in. She’s the only rookie ranked that high in either category.

“We wanted somebody in the front line who would work their butt off,” Bates continues. What we saw in her college days, especially in the Big 12 tournament and throughout the course of the season, is regardless of the situation, regardless of what's happening to her or the team or the game, she's willing to work hard. That's always going to be the foundation of bringing in these young players.”

Of course, Riley is also scoring goals; with three on the season, she’s scored more than any other rookie, and is tied with some big names, including Angel City’s Alyssa Thompson. Bates highlights that her “relentlessness” shows up both off and on the ball, adding, “She's always a problem as a nine and as someone who’s against the line. She's a target. She can hold the ball off. She can make runs in behind. She can play in small spaces.”

As much as Madison has been a role model, coach, and training partner for Riley, likes to think she’s paved the way for her sister in another way, too: in her time at Sky Blue, she served as player rep to the NWSL Players Association, pressing for much-needed changes both at her own club and across the league. Sky Blue was underfunded and went through a tumultuous series of coaching changes during Madison’s 2017–2020 tenure, something she wanted to shield Riley from.

“Seeing where the league has come since I retired in 2020, it’s leaps and bounds,” she says. “In terms of training facilities, where teams play their games. Those are things I didn't even get a sniff of, so I'm really proud and happy that this generation gets to experience it.”

The work Madison did in her time in the league means that Riley and other players of her generation get to focus just on soccer. Riley knows exactly what she wants to do with that opportunity.

“I just want to keep playing the best that I can for the team, working hard and not settling for bare minimum,” says Riley. “I want to continue to learn, obviously, and keep growing relationships—and win a championship. That's the main goal.”