All-England Eleven
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cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
since the first half of the 18th century, various ''ad hoc'' teams have been formed for short-term purposes which have been called England (or sometimes "All-England"; i.e., in the sense of "the rest of England") to play against, say,
Marylebone Cricket Club The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's, Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London, England. The club was the governing body of cricket from 1788 to 1989 and retain ...
(MCC) or an individual county team. The key factor is that they were non-international and there is a significant difference between them and the official
England cricket team The England men's cricket team represents cricket in England, England and cricket in Wales, Wales in international cricket. Since 1997, it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), having been previously governed by Maryleb ...
which takes part in international fixtures. Conceptually, there is evidence of this sort of team being formed, or at least mooted, since the 1730s. They have always been "occasional elevens" but, nevertheless, have invariably been strong sides. A typical example would be a selection consisting of leading players drawn from several county teams.


Origin of the name

The earliest known mention of the concept occurs in a report by the '' London Evening Post'' of 7 to 9 September 1734 which states that the
London Cricket Club The original London Cricket Club was formed in 1722 and was one of the foremost clubs in English cricket over the next four decades, holding First-class cricket#Important matches classification, important match status. It is closely associated ...
, being "desirous of playing one more match before the season is expired, do challenge to play with any eleven men in England". The challenge excluded members of
Croydon Cricket Club The original Croydon Cricket Club, based at Croydon (then part of Surrey), was prominent in the 18th century and played most of its matches at Duppas Hill. The earliest record of the club is in the 1707 season when it played two major matches a ...
, with whom London were in dispute. It is possible that challenges of this sort had been issued previously but no records of them have been found. There had been matches involving, for example, a team representing one county against a team bearing a patron's name and it is possible that teams of the latter type included players from a wide geographical area. In the 1730s, "any eleven men in England" would in practice have come from the southeastern counties only: e.g., Berkshire, Essex, Hampshire, Kent, Middlesex, Surrey, Sussex. The majority of such teams were simply labelled "England" and sometimes the term "all-England" was used loosely in a generic sense but, strictly speaking, the teams represented "the Rest of England". The "all England" term ''per se'' was first used in reports of two
Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
v England matches in 1739. The first was at
Bromley Common Bromley Common is an unincorporated village in Greater London, within the London Borough of Bromley. Prior to 1965 it was within the historic county of Kent. It is south of Bromley town centre and Bickley, west of Southborough and Petts Woo ...
on Monday, 9 July, and billed as "eleven gentlemen of that county (i.e., Kent) and eleven gentlemen from any part of England, exclusive of Kent". Kent, described as "the unconquerable county", won by "a very few notches".Waghorn, pp. 22–23. The second match was at the
Artillery Ground The Artillery Ground in Finsbury is an open space originally set aside for archery and later known also as a cricket venue. Today it is used for military exercises, cricket, rugby and football matches. It belongs to the Honourable Artillery Comp ...
in Bunhill Fields,
Finsbury Finsbury is a district of Central London, forming the southeastern part of the London Borough of Islington. It borders the City of London. The Manorialism, Manor of Finsbury is first recorded as ''Vinisbir'' (1231) and means "manor of a man c ...
on Monday, 23 July. This game was drawn and a report includes the phrase "eleven picked out of all (''sic'') England". Top-level cricket at that time, however, was limited to the southeastern counties. Before these matches, there were instances of teams representing a number of counties. On Thursday, 28 August 1729, a match between
Edwin Stead Edwin Stead (1701 – 28 August 1735) was a patron of English cricket, particularly of Kent teams in the 1720s. He usually captained his teams but nothing is known about his ability as a player. He was born at Harrietsham in Kent and died in ...
's XI and Sir William Gage's XI was held at Penshurst Park, near
Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells (formerly, until 1909, and still commonly Tunbridge Wells) is a town in Kent, England, southeast of Central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the High Weald, whose sandstone ...
in
Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
. The match had the alternative title of Kent (Stead) v Surrey, Sussex & Hampshire (Gage). It was 11-a-side and played for 100 guineas with some thousands watching. It seems to have been the first known innings victory as Gage "got (within three) in one hand, as the former did in two hands, so the Kentish men (i.e., Stead's team) threw it up". A contemporary report states that "( Thomas Waymark) turned the scale of victory, which for some years past has been generally on the Kentish side". Given a 1728 reference to the superiority of Kent in the 1720s, it would seem that only a team representing three other counties had the strength to compete against them.


Generic usage

After 1739, "England" (or "all-England") became a generic term used to denote numerous teams over the next two hundred years. They invariably have important match status, depending on the quality and/or status of their opponents. Sometimes, the all-England teams were given names like "The Rest", which more accurately describes them ''vis-à-vis'' their opponents.CricketArchive – general matches played by "England" teams since 1739
. Retrieved 9 January 2010.

. Retrieved 9 January 2010.

Retrieved 9 January 2010.

Retrieved 9 January 2010.
''CricketArchive'' (CA) lists 29 matches involving teams called England or The Rest between 1739 and 1778. These are all important matches but only one, England v Kent in 1744, has a scorecard. The earliest important match that has been designated "first-class" by CA (i.e., coded F1) was between a Hampshire county team and one called England on Broadhalfpenny Down at Hambledon in Hampshire on 24 June 1772. CA lists all matches involving teams called England without differentiating between international and non-international, so it seems they assume the "England" team of 1772 to be a direct predecessor of the modern England Test team. Not helpfully, CA also uses the term "England XI" and has another list, starting in 1872, of matches played by this team which is currently understood to be the England national team when playing non-international matches on tour. CA's list of England XI matches begins five years before Test cricket started and most of the early matches are between a university team and what is loosely termed an England XI.CricketArchive – first-class matches played by "England XI" teams since 1872
Retrieved 4 January 2014.


William Clarke's All-England Eleven (the AEE)

The name "All-England" took on a specific meaning in 1846 when
William Clarke's All-England Eleven The All-England Eleven (AEE) was an itinerant all-professional first-class cricket team created in 1846 by Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club, Nottinghamshire cricketer William Clarke (cricketer, born 1798), William Clarke. Widely known by it ...
, commonly known as the AEE, was founded as a touring team of leading players, its purpose being to take advantage of the new railway network and play matches at city venues, mainly in the North of England. Clarke's team was indeed a top-class side worthy of its title as, in 1846, it consisted of himself, Joe Guy (cricketer), George Parr (all of
Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...
), William Lillywhite,
Jemmy Dean James "Jemmy" Dean (4 January 1816 – 25 December 1881) was an English first-class cricketer with professional status. Mainly associated with Sussex, he is recorded in 305 matches from 1835 to 1861 which are generally designated first-class, ...
(both
Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...
),
William Denison Sir William Thomas Denison (3 May 1804 – 19 January 1871) was Lieutenant Governor of Van Diemen's Land from 1847 to 1855, Governor of New South Wales from 1855 to 1861, and Governor of Madras from 1861 to 1866. According to Percival Se ...
, Will Martingell (both
Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...
),
Fuller Pilch Fuller Pilch (17 March 1804 – 1 May 1870) was an English first-class cricketer, active from 1820 to 1854. He was a right-handed batting (cricket), batsman who bowling (cricket), bowled at a slow pace with a Roundarm bowling, roundarm action. ...
, Alfred Mynn, Nicholas Wanostrocht (''aka'' "Felix") and William Hillyer (all
Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
). Their matches in
Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...
,
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
and
Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
were a huge success and very profitable, especially for Clarke himself who was careful to pay his players more than
Marylebone Cricket Club The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's, Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London, England. The club was the governing body of cricket from 1788 to 1989 and retain ...
(MCC) did (from £4 to £6 per week) and so keep them interested. He kept the surplus for himself. The AEE continued for several years to showcase the best players of the day. Subsequent additions to the squad included
John Wisden John Wisden (5 September 1826 – 5 April 1884) was an English cricketer who played 187 first-class cricket matches for three English county cricket teams, Kent, Middlesex and Sussex. His father, William, was a builder. He attended Brighton's ...
of Sussex, William Dorrinton of Kent, Tom Sewell senior and his son Tom Sewell junior of Surrey. Because of its strength the AEE generally played "odds" matches against sides composed of twenty-two men, though these odds were reduced when opposed to such sides as
Sheffield Cricket Club The Sheffield Cricket Club was founded in the 18th century and soon began to play a key role in the development of cricket in northern England. It was the direct forerunner of Yorkshire County Cricket Club and some of the teams fielded by Sheffi ...
, Manchester Cricket Club and some county teams. The AEE lasted until 1880. In all matches George Parr with 10,404 runs (av 16.78) was the leading batsman for the side and William Clarke himself took the most wickets (2,385).


United All-England Eleven (UEE)

In 1852, several players set up the United All-England Eleven (UEE) as a rival to the AEE. Clarke would have nothing to do with the UEE but he died in 1856 and, from 1857 to 1866, matches were played between these two teams which were perhaps the most important contests of the English season – certainly judged by the quality of the players. The AEE/UEE concept expanded with the formation of other itinerant elevens, notably the United North of England Eleven (UNEE) and the United South of England Eleven (USEE), the latter showcasing
W. G. Grace William Gilbert Grace (18 July 1848 – 23 October 1915) was an English cricketer who is widely considered one of the sport's all-time greatest players. Always known by his initials as "WG", his first-class career spanned a record-equalling 4 ...
. The travelling elevens ran their course over a period of some thirty seasons but interest in them waned as
county cricket Inter-county cricket matches have been played since the early 18th century, involving teams that are representative of the historic counties of England and Wales. Two county championship competitions have existed since the late 19th century at ...
grew and provided matches with a more competitive edge. With the advent of international cricket in the 1870s, especially following the hugely successful inaugural Australian tour in 1878, the travelling elevens faded away.


Non-international England teams

Teams styled England and commonly referred to as all-England continued to play non-international matches into the 1880s but thereafter they tended to be given names such as The Rest because the England national team was by then well-established and understood to represent the country for the purpose of international cricket. The earliest match involving a team styled "The Rest of England" took place at Bradford Park Avenue in June 1883 when the opposition was a composite Nottinghamshire and
Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
XI. The combined counties won by 6 wickets.CricketArchive – Nottinghamshire and Yorkshire v The Rest 1883
Retrieved on 9 January 2011.
In the 20th century, Test trial matches were occasionally staged (the last in 1976) and these were called England v The Rest, but it is generally understood that the England of these games was the national side while The Rest formed the "all-England" element.


See also

* The Rest (Bombay) * Rest of India * Rest of Australia * Rest of South Africa


References


Bibliography

* {{English cricket teams in the 18th century English cricket teams in the 18th century English cricket teams in the 19th century First-class cricket teams * fr:All-England Eleven