From Wigan Athletic to Salford City - via Melbourne...

The 54-year-old - who took over from Gary Caldwell as DW boss in November 2016, only to be sacked only four months later - has been working most recently in Australia with Melbourne City.

“I’m looking forward to the challenge, a different challenge and relishing the opportunity to work here," Joyce said.

“Obviously you’re starting off afresh, it’s a different challenge to be starting off with near enough a blank piece of paper.

“The club, the management and the owners have done fantastically well in the last few years to get to where they’ve got and they don’t want to stop here.

"And part of it is providing pathways for young players to come through, and local kids to get through to the first team.

“I’ve enjoyed that aspect over a number of years and I’m looking forward to helping people maximise their talent.”

Ahead of Salford's first season in the Football League, Director of Football Chris Casper says it's a real coup.

“It’s the next part of the club," he told Salford's official website.

"I’d say it’s kind of a bridging squad between the academy and the first team, so lads who have come through the academy have got a place and a time they can develop.

“That’s the vision of the club moving forward, to develop our own players as much as possible, give them an opportunity.

"That’s the way the club’s set up, and this is the next part of being able to do that.

“It was spoken about when I came in two-and-a-half years ago, so once the lads have gone through a scholarship of two years, the better ones had to have a team and a squad to develop in basically, as the name suggests.

“Are they good enough to go straight into the first team? Possibly, possibly not.

"But they need an opportunity and a place where they can develop and are given time because that’s the important thing.

“We really believe in our young players, we want to develop our young players, so this gives us an opportunity to do that.”