Darragh Joyce (born 23 April 1997) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the in the

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the only fully professional competition of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body and is responsible for controlling the laws of the gam ...

(AFL), after originally being recruited to the

St Kilda Football Club The St Kilda Football Club, nicknamed the Saints, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, Victoria. The club plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier league. The club ...

. He made his debut in round 15 of the 2018 season against

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

at the

Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), also known locally as "The 'G", is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, Victoria. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadiu ...

AFL career

Joyce is originally from

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

and played

hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...

for his

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

Kilkenny Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512. Kilken ...

and also for club Rower-Inistioge. He tested at the 2015

AFL Draft Combine The AFL Draft Combine, formerly known as the AFL Draft Camp, is a gathering of prospective talent, where selected potential draftees display their athletic prowess and relevant Australian rules football skills. Over four days participants are re ...

, but did not sign with a club because of concerns about homesickness. Joyce trialled with St Kilda in June 2016, and joined as a Category B International Rookie before the 2017 season. He played for St Kilda's

Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

affiliate

Sandringham Sandringham can refer to: Places * Sandringham, New South Wales, Australia * Sandringham, Queensland, Australia * Sandringham, Victoria, Australia **Sandringham railway line **Sandringham railway station **Electoral district of Sandringham * Sand ...

, but struggled for form and was dropped to the reserves. Coach

Lindsay Gilbee Lindsay Gilbee (born 8 July 1981) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Western Bulldogs in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was selected by the Bulldogs in the 3rd round of the 1999 National AFL Draft with pick 4 ...

commented that " oycecame back a much better player". Joyce signed a two-year contract extension in July 2019, extending his stay until the end of 2021. Joyce was delisted by the Saints at the end of 2022, but was later picked up as a rookie by the ahead of the

2023 AFL season The 2023 AFL season is the 127th season of the Australian Football League (AFL), the highest level senior men's Australian rules football competition in Australia, which was known as the Victorian Football League until 1989. The season will fea ...

Family

Joyce is the brother of former Kilkenny hurler Kieran Joyce and the cousin of former

Essendon Essendon may refer to: Australia *Electoral district of Essendon *Electoral district of Essendon and Flemington *Essendon, Victoria **Essendon railway station **Essendon Airport *Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League United King ...

footballer Kevin Walsh.

References

External links

* * Living people 1997 births Kilkenny hurlers St Kilda Football Club players Sandringham Football Club players {{DEFAULTSORT:Joyce, Darragh Irish players of Australian rules football Irish expatriate sportspeople in Australia