It was Lord Sheffield who was responsible for taking an English tea to Australia in 1891-92. He presented the Sheffield Shield, which was contested by New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia in 1892-93. Later, in 1926-27, Queens land joined the competition. As of now, the system in the Aussie cricket world is well organized. Each state has an association of affiliated clubs that controls players and grounds.
Clubs are graded and competitions are arranged for each grade.
The first-grade teams consist of merely novices. They then play with great cricketers. This is the recruiting ground for the state team. No wonder Australia has brought home the World Cup twice - once in 1987, which was followed by a second time in 1999. Its Test record too, is probably one of the best.