After beginning his career with Middlesex, he moved to Sussex in 2009, before returning to Ireland to play for Leinster Lightning in the fledgling first-class competition, the Irish Inter-Provincial Championship.

A left-handed batsman and occasional right-arm bowler of medium pace, Joyce is widely regarded as one of the best cricketers produced by Ireland.

Since dropping down the pecking order for selection with England, Joyce got special dispensation from the International Cricket Council (ICC) to play for Ireland in the 2011 World Cup.

[6] Joyce was acting captain for most of the 2008 season in the absence of the injured Ed Smith this included leading the Middlesex team to victory in the 2008 Twenty20 Cup.

After this competition, the captaincy was handed to Shaun Udal whilst there was uncertainty around Joyce's long-term future at the club.

[11] Despite his imminent departure, Middlesex included Joyce in their squad for the Stanford Super Series and the eventually-cancelled Twenty20 Champions League as a gesture of gratitude for his influence in winning the Twenty20 Cup.

[14] In October 2015, Joyce announced he would step down as captain of the Sussex team following their relegation from the County Championship Division One.

He made his return for Middlesex at Edgbaston on 14 July 2006, in the County Championship against Warwickshire, scoring a career-best 211 in the first innings.

On 15 November 2006, Joyce was selected by England's chairman of selectors, David Graveney, to be in the Test squad for the 2006/2007 Ashes series, in place of Marcus Trescothick, who withdrew, suffering from a stress-related illness.

He totalled 288 runs in nine matches at an average of 32.00, including his maiden half-century in the losing run-chase against New Zealand at Perth.

[17] Joyce was named Man of the Match for his performance, and the innings helped him earn a place in the squad for the World Cup in the West Indies.

I had a very successful 2009 with Sussex winning the Most Valuable Player award for the Friends Provident trophy and also two winners medals in theTwenty20 Cup and Nat West Pro40 competition.

[24] In June 2015 Joyce scored 231 runs in the first innings against the United Arab Emirates in the 2015–17 ICC Intercontinental Cup at Malahide.