In cricket, the term All-England (often rendered confusingly as "England") has been used for various non-international teams that have been formed for short-term purposes since the 1739 English cricket season and it indicates that the "Rest of England" is playing against, say, MCC or an individual county team. Teams of this type have always been "occasional elevens", per se, and there is a significant difference between them and the official England national cricket team which takes part in international fixtures. Nevertheless, they have invariably been strong sides and a typical All-England team would consist of leading first-class players drawn from several county teams.
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The term was first used in reports of two Kent v All-England matches in July 1739.
The first match was at Bromley Common in Kent on Monday 9 July 1739. It was billed as between "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".[1]
The second match was at the Artillery Ground in Bunhill Fields, Finsbury on Monday 23 July 1739. This game was drawn and a report includes the phrase "eleven picked out of all (sic) England".[1]
The term then became a generic one and was used to denote countless teams over the next two hundred years. Sometimes, teams of this type were simply called "England", although they were not international teams, or were given names like "The Rest".[2][3][4][5]
The name "All-England" took on a specific meaning in 1846 when William Clarke's All-England Eleven, 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, George Parr (all of Nottinghamshire), William Lillywhite, Jemmy Dean (both Sussex), William Denison, Will Martingell (both Surrey), Fuller Pilch, Alfred Mynn, Nicholas Wanostrocht (aka "Felix") and William Hillyer (all Kent). Their matches in Sheffield, Manchester and Leeds were a huge success and very profitable, especially for Clarke himself who was careful to pay his players more than Marylebone Cricket Club (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 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, 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).
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 WG Grace.
The travelling elevens ran their course over a period of some thirty seasons but interest in them waned as county cricket 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.
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 first-class 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 XI. The combined counties won by 6 wickets.[6]
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.