Wellington, Jul 4 (IANS): New Zealand all-rounder James Franklin Monday expressed disappointment at missing out on a central contract for the second consecutive year and insisted that he had a lot to offer, especially in cricket Tests.

Franklin missed the cut in the 20-man contract list announced by New Zealand Cricket last week.

The 30-year-old said the Board's decision comes as a shock considering he was a regular member of the team in the last six months.

"I can't change what they have done," Franklin was quoted as saying by the Dominion Post. "This is a tough one. Last year I was half expecting it, but this one has come out of the blue and I am a bit bitter. In my last 14 one-day innings I have averaged 54, but they have made their decision. To miss out entirely on a Test ranking is a hard one for me to fathom. I feel I have a huge amount to offer in the longer form of the game."

The national selection manager, Mark Greatbatch had earlier justified Franklin's absence from the contract list saying that he was not consistent enough. Franklin, reacting to Greatbatch's comments, admitted that he could have done better in the 2011 World Cup in the sub-continent particularly after having a good series in India in December.

"If I pinpoint anything I didn't do, which I wanted to do, it was my World Cup performances. But there were a couple of early games when I didn't get a bat or bowl so I suddenly felt I had no form. Because it was a World Cup, it got microscoped a fair bit and that seemed to be the last point of memory in terms of sorting out contracts."

Franklin started as a bowler who could bat a bit but later transformed into a genuine all-rounder. But Franklin said he need to improve upon his bowling.

"There is stuff to tidy up in my bowling - there is no two ways in that," he said. "My stats say I am a good first-class bowler but that hasn't always been the case at the next level. I need to get the venom back I had four to five years ago when I was in the mid to high 130s."