Luke James Joyce (born 9 July 1987) is an English former professional footballer who is now the Lead North Scout at Premier League club Brentford.

He was allowed to sign for Carlisle United six months later, from where he was loaned out to Conference Premier clubs Barrow and Northwich Victoria during the 2008–09 season.

[5] He made one appearance for the first team, coming on as a substitute for Josip Skoko in extra time of a 3–3 draw at Leeds United in an FA Cup Third Round replay on 17 January 2006.

[6] Manager Paul Jewell said that "he didn't let anybody down" in the game and praised his attitude in training, as did "Latics" youth team coach David Lee.

[5] However, Joyce did not make an appearance for the club in the Premier League and was allowed to leave the JJB Stadium at the end of the 2005–06 season.

[7] After a short trial, Joyce joined Carlisle United, initially with the club taking over his Wigan scholarship, signing permanently in July 2006.

[6] He made his debut in League One as an 85th-minute substitute for Simon Hackney in a 2–0 win over Cheltenham Town at Brunton Park on 3 September.

[11] On 27 November 2008, he joined Conference Premier club Barrow on a one-month loan; "Bluebirds" manager David Bayliss said that "Luke will definitely strengthen us but whether he starts or not remains to be seen".

[19] He scored three goals in 47 matches as Stanley finished in 14th-place under the stewardship of Paul Cook at the end of the 2011–12 season; Joyce took over as captain following the departure of Andrew Procter in January 2012.

Joyce played 49 games in the 2013–14 season as Accrington posted a 15th-place finish under the stewardship of rookie manager James Beattie.

[22] John Coleman returned as manager early in the 2014–15 campaign and kept Joyce as captain, with the midfielder scoring four goals from 50 appearances.

[25] He made 42 appearances as United posted a tenth-place finish in League Two at the end of the 2015–16 season, though was booed and criticised by some supporters after suffering from poor form in March, which manager Keith Curle blamed on a "nervous period".

[33][34][35] On 17 May 2018, Joyce signed a two-year contract with League Two side Port Vale; manager Neil Aspin said that "he is comfortable in possession and was impressive against us for Carlisle".

[44] He scored one goal in 43 appearances throughout the 2019–20 season, missing just one league game due to suspension, providing the defensive cover in the holding midfield role to allow players such as Scott Burgess, Jake Taylor and Tom Conlon to get further forward.

[58] In December 2023, the club announced that their fixture against Workington on 6 January 2024 would be the last of Joyce's career, the player retiring to take up a role as Lead North Scout at Brentford.

[33] Port Vale manager John Askey stated that "with Luke not only is it his football, his organisation and encouragement helps the other players".