AUSTRALIAN all-rounder Ashley Noffke has revealed the reasons why he turned down Worcestershire's recent offer to be the New Road side's overseas player this season.

The 30-year-old former Durham and Middlesex player, who topped Gloucester-shire's bowling averages with 15 Cham-pionship wickets at 22.23 last year, is determined to resurrect his international ambitions for Australia.

Noffke was beginning to think the would never get his chance after missing out on the 2001 Ashes tour and the 2003 tour of the Caribbean, but the former Australia A' player has been in the form his life for his state Queensland this winter, which earned him a place in the Australian team for the Twenty20 international against New Zealand in Perth before Christmas.

Australia are scheduled to tour Pakistan in April - if security fears can be allayed - followed by a tour of the Caribbean in June and July, and Noffke is hoping to make his Test and one-day international debuts if called upon.

"There are so many tours for Australia this year that I don't want to commit to playing any county cricket," Noffke said.

"I've had some injury problems in my career so playing county cricket for six months without a break on top of the Australian season is hard on my body."

However, Noffke is not ruling out a shorter stint for Worcestershire in the future.

He said: "I am definitely open to the possibility of playing more county cricket for part of the season in the future and that could be for Worcestershire."