Leyland’s route to rugby league came at an earlier age compared to Johnson.
Having spent his early years playing rugby union, he crossed to rugby league at the age of 10 and “never looked back” after winning a scholarship with London Broncos and rising through their ranks to eventually reach the first team.
Such was Leyland’s importance to the club, he eventually appeared in every Super League game for the Broncos last term and earned himself a move up the M6 from 2025.
“The challenge is different [at Warrington],” he said.
“You’ve got so many different players around you. I’m not saying London had bad players but [there are] players [at Warrington] that are massively proven and have years of experience.
“You’ve got internationals but also someone like Stefan Ratchford. You talk to him and he’s 36 now and he’s done it for 20 years – just the little things he can give you and training alongside him, it does improve you.”
Going from smaller crowds at London to regularly playing with the level of expectation that Warrington brings is something that Leyland says he will learn about while on the job.
“London have a great group of loyal fans that are loud and proud. The money and time they spend travelling up and down the country is phenomenal and they’ve got massive respect,” he added.
“Here you’ve got 10 or 15 times that, which is going to be daunting. It’s going to be interesting playing in front of a packed Halliwell Jones every week.
“I’m excited to meet people and get to grips with it and try and put my best foot forward and represent this town, which has a great club and history and deserves to be represented in the right way.”