ROHAN Smith clearly rates Stuart Howarth – he started him in last weekend’s crunch clash at Leigh and did not give him a breather until early in the second half.

The Bulls head coach recently signed Howarth on a one-month loan from Wakefield and talks are due to take place shortly about extending the arrangement.

Howarth made his home debut in the home defeat to Halifax and was then named as the starting hooker last weekend, with Adam O’Brien coming off the bench in the second half.

For a player who has found himself on the fringes at his parent club, the belief that Smith has showed in Howarth has clearly poured confidence into the 26-year-old Wiganer.

“Rohan is brilliant and is really trying to develop me individually, not just the team,” said Howarth.

“I'm really buying into what he is saying and he is giving me big minutes.

“Adam O’Brien and I are sharing the time on the field and we are working together and bouncing off each other.

“We are also learning from each other in training, so it looks like it's a good combination up to now.

“Adam is a little bit different to me. I'm a dummy half who likes to use his craft and deception whereas he is a bit more of a runner, so it works well.

“I'm a bit bigger than Adam too, so maybe it works well for me to start off the game when it's a bit more physical before he comes on and speeds things up.”

With homegrown youngster Joe Lumb currently sidelined as he recovers from knee surgery, Howarth’s presence at Odsal is important right now.

Wakefield’s Super League status appears virtually assured and that could open the door for Howarth to stay at Bradford until the end of the campaign and possibly beyond.

Howarth said: “As things stand, I’ve got two more games – Whitehaven and Oldham.

“It's a great club and I love it here, but I'm contracted to Wakefield and I'll have to go back if they want me back.

“If not, I would be more than happy to stay here long-term or short-term.

“I'm sure that after the Whitehaven game I'll speak to Rohan or my agent will talk to the club so I know where I am for the rest of the season.

“Hopefully we can get it sorted shortly, but I'm not worried about Wakefield because I'm just focusing on myself and if I perform well, then everything else will look after itself.

“Bradford is a massive club with a great history who deserve to be in the Super League, let alone the top four in the Championship.

“We're in a bit of a sticky spot at the moment, but all we can do is win our remaining games and hopefully other teams can do us a favour.

“It's not the best position to be in because we want to be in control of our own fate.

“But anything can happen – it's the same in Super League – and everyone here is pulling in the same direction.”

Howarth has yet to taste victory in a Bulls jersey and nothing less than three wins in their remaining games will do.

He said: “Losing at Leigh was a tough one to take because I thought we had done enough to win it.

“We would have done with a better game-management towards the end of the match. But it wasn't to be – Leigh got the points and we move on.”