Jarrod Sammut happy to continue journey at Bradford Bulls

The 37-year-old returned to the club in July and has shone with Jordan Lilley in the halves, while he’s also provided a great deal of experience for this young Bulls side in the lead up to the play-offs.

Unfortunately for Sammut and his teammates, they couldn’t end the season on a high as they fell to a 21-20 defeat in Toulouse on Sunday evening.

It remains to be seen whether it will be the Maltese international’s last appearance in a Bradford shirt.

Discussing his future plans after Sunday’s defeat, Sammut said: “I’ve spoken to Eamon (O’Carroll) and the club and said that I’d love to carry on playing.

“I’d love to remain at Bradford, but as it stands the club has got three half-backs on the books for next year, so it’s a position that is not favourable for myself.

“I think, at the moment, that could well be the telling tale. However, I’d love to carry on at Bradford.”

Sammut, 37, despite returning to Odsal as recently as July, has already seen a number of improvements at the club under the guidance of O’Carroll.

He said: “I think Freddy (O’Carroll) is a great coach. For his first year at the helm of Bradford, I think he’s done a great job.

“At the end of the day, I know his head is on the chopping block because of his position at the club, but us as players have let him down.

“Freddy and the rest of the coaching staff have done everything they can to prepare us for this game (Toulouse) and this season as a whole.

“The players are the ones that have let Freddy and the club down today (Sunday).

“The fans in the crowd need to really rally behind him to make sure Bradford have a bigger and better end to the season next year.”

Jarrod Sammut played a crucial role in this eliminator win for Bulls over Featherstone 10 days ago, but he was unable to quite guide his side into this weekend's Championship Grand Final. (Image: Tom Pearson.)

Sammut added: “Anything short of a grand final next year would be seen as disappointing.”

Reflecting on Sunday’s defeat in Toulouse, Sammut said: “In the first ten minutes of the game, everything we spoke about and worked on last week, we seemed to do the total opposite this week.

“But we got ourselves into a great position to regain some momentum and get back in front on the scoreboard going into half-time. We were unlucky not to go into the break with another try.

“In the second half, we just weren’t clinical enough and we didn’t control the ball as well as we should have done.

“Realistically, we crucified ourselves and we gave the game to Toulouse, which is probably the most heart wrenching and frustrating thing about this match.

“The game was in our control, but we gifted it to them. It’s a tough pill to take and I can’t see it (the feeling of defeat) getting any easier. This one hurts.”

And Sammut went on to admit that this defeat pains him that little bit more because of his affinity with the Odsal club.

He said: “I don’t think any loss helps ever, but I have a fond love for Bradford and I’m so happy and overwhelmed that I had the opportunity to return to a club that I love.

“Also, the opportunity to play with this group of players who are pushing right until the finals, was also another great feeling.

“Sadly, I felt like we were our own worst enemies, and it stings to say that.”