JONNY Walker has fixed his sights firmly on securing a long-term future at Bradford as he prepares to return to Whitehaven this evening.
The Bulls prop played for the Cumbrian outfit against Jimmy Lowes’ side in a tumultuous clash at the Recreation Ground last May.
He was on loan from Leigh at the time and went on to impress for London Broncos against the Bulls in a second loan spell later in the season.
Those two performances persuaded Lowes to bring the Bradford lad back home to Odsal, where he and twin brother Adam played in the academy as youngsters, on a one-year deal.
Having adapted well to life at his home-town club, Walker is determined to cement his place in Lowes' plans and secure a contract beyond the end of this season.
The 24-year-old said: “I know I’ve missed a few chances at other clubs I’ve been at but when the opportunity arose to come to Bradford, I jumped at it.
“I’m out of contract at the end of the year and I want to push forward and try and earn another deal.
“I’m enjoying working with Jimmy and the rest of the coaches, and I’m learning a lot from the other boys too.
“I really enjoyed it against Featherstone last weekend with it being my first competitive home game.
“I had been wanting to come back to Bradford for a while and in the Castleford friendly I took a knock to my thumb, so against Featherstone I was determined to show what I could do.
“I had a load of family and friends there to support me last Sunday and there are more coming up to Whitehaven because they have grown up as Bulls fans like me.
“It was good playing for Whitehaven last season and especially good to come up against Bradford.
“Bradford beat us in the last ten minutes… but only after I came off the field!
“I’m looking forward to playing against Whitehaven now for the Bulls and hopefully putting in a better performance than I did against Featherstone. There is a lot to improve on in my game.”
Lowes called Walker a “penalty machine” this week and admitted the rugged prop has plenty of rough edges which need ironing out of his game.
Nevertheless, the Bulls boss is an admirer of Walker’s no-nonsense style and he could hand him a starting role this evening with Ben Kavanagh absent through injury.
Walker said: “My carries could have been stronger and my offloads could have been better against Featherstone.
“I offload more than that normally in a game and, while my aggression was good, I think their forwards at times dominated our pack. We could have been better.”
Walker is expecting a forward-dominated slugfest in the mud today and believes the conditions could prove something of a leveller.
He added: “It will be bad up there and like running on sand, so we’ve got to play to the conditions.
“On a heavy pitch, you’ve got to take any opportunities that come your way.”
Hooker Joe Lumb is in the squad for today’s game and is hoping to make his first competitive appearance for the club.
The former West Bowling youngster, who impressed in the friendlies against Leeds and Castleford, said: “As soon as Jimmy gives me a chance, I will be ready to take it.
“It’s really easy to learn from someone like Adam O’Brien and I tried to enjoy myself in the friendlies.
“There are four hookers – Adam, Vila Halafihi, Jean-Philippe Baile and myself – so I need to keep working hard.”
Lumb was signed by the academy last season and has enjoyed a rapid rise into the full-time first-team ranks along with Ethan Ryan.
“I’m loving it and it certainly beats working every day,” said Lumb.
“I was working in a job selling air conditioning and now I’m a full-time rugby player, so it’s a big change.
“There are a lot of other good lads in the academy who played against Castleford recently, so the future of the club is looking good.”
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