Indiah-Paige Riley can lay claim to having played for both host nations at the FIFA Women's World Cup - but it's the black jersey she wants to wear come July, she tells Merryn Anderson.
Indiah-Paige Riley is quick to stress she’s not Australian - even if the accent suggests it.
One of the newest Football Ferns, Riley was born in New Zealand to Kiwi parents, and spent her early sporty years playing rugby. But she moved to Australia with her mum when she was seven - and later discovered football.
She climbed through Australian youth teams, and played one game for the Matildas in 2021, but also qualified for and committed to New Zealand in 2022 - a decision she says was “really hard”.
“But I’m a family person and I wanted to represent where I come from and my family as well,” the 21-year-old striker says.
“I think to make [a decision like this] at such a young age, it comes with a lot of risks as well. But once I’d made my decision, I’ve been super happy with joining the Ferns and representing my family and me and the black jersey.”
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Only having Australian citizenship through her paternal grandfather, who was born in Australia but moved to New Zealand, Riley is still proud to have received a Matildas cap, for the country where she played all her football growing up.
“It really was a dream come true and something I’m so grateful that I’ve been a part of the Matildas and now I’m part of the Ferns,” she says.
“Not many players can say they’ve played for two national teams. It’s unique and I’m really happy it's not something that everyone gets to do.
“I spent a lot of time in the Australian national team's youth system so to play with the players I’ve looked up to for so long as well, like Sam Kerr, it was a dream come true honestly.”
After growing up in rugby teams in New Zealand, Riley didn’t even play football until she joined the under 12 team at her local club in Australia.
And yet she made her A-League debut for the Brisbane Roar when she was just 16 years old.
Riley stopped rugby around the age of 12, due to the lack of girls teams in Australia. She also dabbled in other sports, including ice skating - encouraged by her mum, who represented New Zealand in roller skating. But Riley hated it, and committed to football.
She applied for Australian citizenship around the age of 15, wanting to be chosen for the junior Matildas squad.
Riley first turned out for the Brisbane Roar in the A-League in November 2018, a month before she turned 17. She knew then she wanted to be a professional footballer, watching other players spend the Australian winters in the United States, playing in the National Women's Soccer League.
“The older players would go overseas for most of the year…being around players who were doing that for so long really motivated me. That’s when I was like 'That’s what I want to do, I want to be like them, I want to play football all year round'.”
After her second season with the Roar, Riley was signed by Fortuna Hjorring, and started playing with the Danish club in 2020. Unable to see her family while playing due to Covid restrictions, Riley made her return to the Roar at the beginning of this year.
“That’s where my mum is and where my grandparents are,” Riley says of Brisbane.
“I’m such a family person, I love being home; I love the weather in Brisbane, it’s so nice and sunny. That’s where I started and I think Brisbane will always hold a special place in my heart. I love playing in orange, it is my second home as well.”
Having spent all her time in the Australian system, Riley’s first Football Ferns camp was a daunting experience.
“Oh my gosh, I literally knew no-one!” Riley laughs, coming from Denmark by herself to the camp in the United States.
“It was a daunting situation to go into because I really didn’t know anyone. But looking back, to where I am now, I really feel like I’ve made some lifelong friends and I’m so happy we crossed paths.”
Being pushed out of her comfort zone in a new environment was a challenge Riley is glad for.
“In the Matildas camp, I knew people and I was comfortable, I had already established friendships with so many of the girls, growing up watching them for so long,” she explains.
“Then coming into the Ferns, I had to find my feet and find how I wanted to be in the team and find my place.
“It really does feel like such a positive environment and we really do have a great team culture. That’s something I think is so important in teams so I’m super happy to be in such a good team with a good team culture.”
Riley made her Football Ferns debut against Mexico in September last year, with her mum and stepdad in the crowd.
“I was like ‘Mum are you sure you want to come? This is my first camp, I might not play’ . And she goes ‘No, we haven’t seen you play in so long because of Covid’,” Riley explains, her family unable to see her play in Denmark.
“[I’m] so happy she came over because I ended up playing two full games, so she definitely got to see me play a lot. It’s a special memory for us to all look back on and for them to be part of such a big moment in my career.”
Riley played in Wellington in January against the US team, where the record for a Football Ferns attendance was broken, with 12,508 fans filling Sky Stadium. The record was re-set in the next game, as 12,721 people came to Eden Park.
“Obviously we want to get that higher and higher, we want to keep breaking that record,” Riley says. “It makes me speechless to be honest, to see how far it’s come…hopefully we can set it again.”
Riley is a believer in home advantage, as the Ferns try to get their first win at a FIFA Women’s World Cup. New Zealand sit 25th in the world rankings, and are facing Norway (12th), the Philippines (49th) and Switzerland (20th) in pool play.
“The people in the stands, they’re like our 12th woman on the field,” Riley says.
“Their support truly does a lot, especially if the game isn’t going our way. They’re always there, cheering their hearts out. We feel that and it makes us really want to perform for them.”
Riley admits the chance to play in the Football Ferns for this World Cup would be the ultimate achievement in her career so far.
“The World Cup is the pinnacle of it all in football," she says. "And to have the opportunity to possibly be a part of my first ever World Cup, and at home - with the countries that raised me both hosting - it’d be a dream come true.”
*The Football Ferns play Vietnam in Napier on July 10, before opening their World Cup campaign against Norway on July 20 at Eden Park.
