TIM SONDERER MEMORIAL TROPHY YEAR 7 & 8
The Tim Sonderer Memorial Trophy Year 7 & 8 tournament is an annually held event, open to all Year 7 & 8 school teams in New Zealand.
Scroll down to read about Tim Sonderer.
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2024 Tim Sonderer Memorial Information:
2nd-4th August 2024 - Auckland
- Entries open: 24th May 2024
- Entries close: 21st June 2024
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NZWP news article about Tim Sonderer
20/09/16
The 2016 Tim Sonderer Memorial Tournament wrapped up in Auckland over the weekend, and this year’s event had a special touch.
It was the 20th running of the tournament, and Cherry Sonderer – Tim’s mother – presented the trophy to the winning team, Saint Kentigern Boys’ School.
“This is just the biggest privilege and the most extraordinary thing that the tournament is named after him” she said.
Tim was an avid swimmer and water polo player for Auckland’s Marist Water Polo club and Remuera Intermediate School.
“He was going to Auckland Grammar the next year and he’d already been put in the water polo team”
He was tragically killed in a quad bike accident while holidaying in December of 1995.
Tim and his close friend Katie Dallimore both played water polo for their clubs, but they wanted to play more.
“Katie and Tim swam, and so the two of them couldn’t wait to play polo. They got into their heads that they could have an intermediate tournament and so it started” said Sonderer.
It was solely the idea of two intermediate-aged friends to get water polo going for year 7 and 8 students, and with support from their parents, schools, and New Zealand Water Polo’s Chris Hayward, the tournament was born.
“It was their desire to start playing [intermediate] water polo – they couldn’t wait until high school”
“There were only six or eight teams, it was the first time it had been held and they won in their last year at intermediate” she said.
Tim’s team won the inaugural tournament (see inset photo), he passed away that summer.
Fast forward 20 years, and the tournament has been won by six different schools. Cherry was at the finals to present the brand new trophy to the winning captain.
“It’s really exciting, for many players this is their first tournament”
Saint Kentigern Boys’ School continued their string of strong results, beating Sacred Heart College 7-3 in the final. Jourdan Klink scored six goals for Saint Kentigern, and was awarded MVP and accepted the new trophy, donated by Cherry Sonderer.
38 teams competed across three grades in this tournament, all in the spirit of the memory of Tim Sonderer; the ‘larger than life’ kid who couldn’t wait to get into the water.
“Tim was a big character – he was already nearly six feet tall, a great kid, really” said Sonderer.
“He was always saying ‘what can I do next’ – he was fearless, but he was also sensitive and kind”.
