The United South of England Eleven (USEE) was an itinerant cricket team founded in November 1864 by Edgar Willsher, as secretary, and John Lillywhite, as treasurer.
[1] The USEE had no home venue as its prime purpose, like all similarly named teams of the time, was to operate as a travelling show and bring top-class cricket to places in Great Britain and Ireland which rarely received it.
Fourteen USEE matches have been recognised by CricketArchive as first-class, mostly against the rival United North of England Eleven (UNEE).
The USEE was founded at a time of protracted antagonism between northern and southern professionals when the public's demand for exhibition matches was in decline.
Although the Graces were an expensive acquisition, they were cricket's main attraction and were guaranteed to draw large crowds wherever the USEE played.
It was part of the fall-out from a north–south schism within professional cricket which centred on bad relations between Nottinghamshire and Surrey.
[5] After their father died in December 1871, W. G. and Fred Grace increased their involvement with the USEE to finance both their home (they still lived with their mother) and their medical studies.
They received payment from USEE funds for organising matches and claimed expenses for travel and accommodation whenever they played.
The UNEE got off to a flying start when they easily beat the USEE, including the Graces, at Lord's in July 1870 by an innings and 70 runs.
The teams met again at The Oval in August and this match was drawn, the USEE needing 33 more to win with eight wickets standing and W. G. Grace still in with 51 not out.
At Todmorden in July, the USEE won convincingly by an innings and 30 runs, largely due to a century by Henry Charlwood and ten wickets taken by W. G.
The first of these games took place at Dublin in May 1865 and the USEE fielded a strong team of Surrey and Sussex professionals, but the Ireland XXII managed a draw.
[24] Poignantly, it was also the last cricket match ever played by USEE stalwart Fred Grace, who died eleven days later.