ACFC Rookie Forward Riley Tiernan and Interim Head Coach Sam Laity Discusses Preparation Ahead of Home Match against East Coast Rival NJ/NY Gotham FC

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NWSL Angel City FC

ACFC Rookie Forward Riley Tiernan and Interim Head Coach Sam Laity Discusses Preparation Ahead of Home Match against East Coast Rival NJ/NY Gotham FC

April 16, 2025 - National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
Angel City FC News Release


LOS ANGELES - Angel City Football Club (ACFC) prepared for their return to BMO Stadium this week against East Coast rival NJ/NY Gotham FC on Friday, April 18, streaming live on NWSL+ (7:30 pm PT kickoff). Rookie forward Riley Tiernan and Interim Head Coach Sam Laity were made available to press today to discuss the match.

Additionally, Sporting Director Mark Parsons joined the call to share news regarding Laity's tenure at ACFC. Please find all quotes below.

ACFC Sporting Director Mark Parsons

On Sam Laity joining the club as a permanent assistant coach in June:

"I wanted to share an update with regards to Sam Laity and his future with Angel City. We've been successful in the last two or three weeks to make his appointment in our organization permanent. He will move to a senior assistant coach role on June 1st. Right now he is our head coach, and we're incredibly happy with the start that he has made with our staff and our players.

"It had been a goal of mine when he first got here to keep him in the organization past his interim head coach role, and now we will be transitioning him to assistant coach in June.

"While it was my goal that I wasn't the only person who gets to have a view on this, Sam and his performance had to have a big say on it, but also our technical staff, our leadership, our players.

"When we understand what the head coach, permanent head coach position could look like, which we're getting closer to, now we're in a position to be able to give this clarity in regards to Sam. I wanted to share that with you all today in a proud way because of the way he has worked and supported our players and our team. As a Sporting Director I'm excited that we're going to keep a very extraordinarily talented coach in our organization past his role as interim head coach."

ACFC Rookie Forward Riley Tiernan

Thoughts on playing against NJ/NY Gotham FC on Friday:

"I'm taking it as any other game. Every game is just as important as the next. I am looking to perform as well as I can and do my best for the team."

On playing alongside Alyssa Thompson:

"She's a very crafty and skilled player. She's always making those explosive runs in behind, so I'm just trying to do the same thing, get into dangerous spaces and be as technical as possible. She's been very good with that so having someone to look up to in that aspect has been really nice."

On how playing for Rutgers prepared her for the pros:

"My coach Mike O'Neill and the entire coaching staff did a really great job at shaping and creating not only amazing players but amazing people. I learned a lot of defense, which I think can sometimes be overlooked as a forward.

"It's definitely something that I took with me and that was a big thing that gave me an advantage in this environment. They took note of my defensive efforts and that helped me. Rutgers was the best place I could ever be. They taught me how to be an amazing person and player."

On the first two goals she has scored:

"My first goal was definitely one of my best goals of my entire career, I would say. It was a beautiful ball by Claire [Emslie]. I know that anytime she's on the wing, she's looking to play those crosses in the air. She's so technically sound and one of the top players that I've played with as well. I know that when she's on the ball, it's most likely going to get to the right spot. It's just me doing my job of getting in the right spot for her to finish it off and it was a perfect ball so easy for me to head in.

"The second goal was the same thing but a much different goal. Knowing Alyssa [Thompson], how talented she is and how strong she is on the ball, I knew I needed to be ready for anything that could happen. I ended up getting a little pass and a top of the box shot."

ACFC Interim Head Coach Sam Laity

On facing Gotham's goalkeeper Ann Katrin Berger:

"The first thing is her ability on the ball, she's Gotham's extra player. The qualities that she possesses with the ball at her feet in the decision making are very obvious and very clear. Our job is to do our job. If we do our job it's to make life very difficult for her and very difficult for a team.

"With the ball, the quality is there, decision making, tactically, composure, she checks all the boxes. If we do our job she's going to need to have a good game."

On what he is most proud of right now with the team:

"It's the mentality of the group. The mentality and the personality of the group, so far from day one, from what we've seen in preseason has been exceptional. That's the foundation for a successful team and a successful club, and for a successful culture.

"The mentality, the grit, the determination, the resilience, because from that you start adding talent to those things and you know the world is your oyster.

On June Endo's returning to training yesterday:

"It was an amazing moment yesterday for Jun, for the club, for the team, and for her teammates. It was a really special moment for Jun to come back. It was her first time training with the team and it was a pretty emotional and a cool moment.

"I was really happy and fortunate that I was here to experience that. Coming back from an injury like that for any player is a really long and often lonely journey. She's onto the next step of a progression now and that's great for her. It's great for the club, it's great for the team, and it's great for her teammates. We're looking forward to the moment when she can be back on the field with us.

"She's still non-contact at the moment and a little bit away from being involved in contact exercises, but so happy to have her back already in the short period of time. You can see the quality that comes from her and what she's able to produce. It just actually gave everybody a lift.

"In training yesterday, the players were absolutely flying. It was supposed to be a bit of a re-entry session and relatively light, but the intensity was absolutely outstanding. Part of that comes from the fact that you've got players like Jun returning to the fold. When you've got players like that adding quality to what we've already achieved and what we already have, it makes the place even more positive and energetic."

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