⭐Mild
Heathfield Stephenson's All-England Eleven — The First English Tour of Australia, 1861-62
England (All-England XI) vs Australian colonial sides
1862-03-01
Twelve English professionals captained by Surrey's H.H. Stephenson sailed on Brunel's SS Great Britain to play the first cricket tour ever undertaken to Australia. Funded by the Melbourne caterers Felix Spiers and Christopher Pond, the team played 12 matches against odds of 18 and 22 between Christmas Day 1861 and March 1862, drawing 45,000 spectators across three days for the opening fixture against Victoria and laying the commercial foundation of all future Anglo-Australian cricket.
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