Kurt John Sorensen (born 8 November 1956) is a New Zealand former professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 11 ...

footballer who played in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s.

Background

He is the brother of fellow

Kiwi Kiwi most commonly refers to: * Kiwi (bird), a flightless bird native to New Zealand * Kiwi (nickname), a nickname for New Zealanders * Kiwifruit, an edible berry * Kiwi dollar or New Zealand dollar, a unit of currency Kiwi or KIWI may also ref ...

international,

Dane Sorensen Dane Hans Ivan Peter Sorensen (born 4 October 1955) is a New Zealand former rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s and 1980s. Sorensen represented New Zealand and his usual position was . Background He's the brother of fellow Kiwi in ...

, and the nephew of another pair of Kiwi brothers,

Bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

and Dave Sorensen.Coffey and Wood ''The Kiwis: 100 Years of International Rugby League'' He is of Tongan and Danish descent.

Playing career

While playing in the Auckland Rugby League competition, Sorensen made his début for the

New Zealand national rugby league team The New Zealand national rugby league team ( Māori: Tīma rīki motu Aotearoa) has represented New Zealand in rugby league since 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of ...

in the 1975 World Cup. The following year, while playing for Mt Wellington, he won the Auckland Rugby League's

Rothville Trophy The Auckland Rugby League competition has been competed for since 1909 when the first organised match was played between North Shore and City Rovers (won 44–22 by North Shore). The following year an official champion was crowned for the first tim ...

, which is awarded to the Premier One player of the year as chosen by the Auckland Coach. Sorensen then moved to England to play for

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the north-east and Warrington t ...

for the 1976–77 season. He later played for the

Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks The Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Cronulla, in the Sutherland Shire, Southern Sydney, New South Wales. They compete in the National Rugby League (NRL), Australasia's premier rugby leag ...

, finishing the 1982 season as the club's top

try Try or TRY may refer to: Music Albums * ''Try!'', an album by the John Mayer Trio * ''Try'' (Bebo Norman album) (2014) Songs * "Try" (Blue Rodeo song) (1987) * "Try" (Colbie Caillat song) (2014) * "Try" (Nelly Furtado song) (2004) * " Try (Ju ...

scorer. While at Widnes, Sorensen played in 252 games and captained the side that won the

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

, the Premiership and the

1989 World Club Challenge The 1989 World Club Challenge (also known as the Foster's World Club Challenge due to sponsorship by brewers, Foster's) was the third ever and first official World Club Challenge match. 1989's NSWRL season premiers, the Canberra Raiders travelle ...

. He also played in the Widnes side that lost the Challenge Cup. In 1986, after returning from the English season, Sorensen made some cameo appearances for the

Northcote Tigers The Northcote Tigers are a rugby league club based in Northcote, New Zealand. The club was founded in 1910 as the Northcote Warriors though they became known as the Northcote Ramblers shortly afterwards.John Haynes ''From All Blacks to All Gol ...

in the Auckland Rugby League competition.''1986 Lion Red Rugby League Annual'',

New Zealand Rugby Football League The New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league football in New Zealand. SPARC, 2009: 13 The NZRL was founded on 25 April 1910 in preparation for a tour of Great Britain that same year.Coffey and Wood '' ...

, 1986. p.101 During the 1989–90 season, Sorensen captained defending champions Widnes at second-row forward in their

victory against the visiting

Canberra Raiders The Canberra Raiders are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the national capital city of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. They have competed in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby ...

. Kurt Sorensen played left- in

Widnes Widnes ( ) is an industrial town in the Borough of Halton, Cheshire, England, which at the 2011 census had a population of 61,464. Historically in Lancashire, it is on the northern bank of the River Mersey where the estuary narrows to form th ...

' 24–18 victory over

Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...

in the 1990 Lancashire Cup Final during the 1990–91 season at

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban park in the United States, with an estimated ...

on Saturday 29 September 1990. Kurt Sorensen played left- in

' 6–12 defeat by

in the 1988–89 John Player Special Trophy Final during the 1988–89 season at

Burnden Park Burnden Park was the home of English football club Bolton Wanderers who played home games there between 1895 and 1997. As well as hosting the 1901 FA Cup Final replay, it was the scene in 1946 of one of the greatest disasters in English footba ...

Bolton Bolton (, locally ) is a large town in Greater Manchester in North West England, formerly a part of Lancashire. A former mill town, Bolton has been a production centre for textiles since Flemish weavers settled in the area in the 14th ...

on Saturday 7 January 1989, and played left-, and scored a

in the 24–0 victory over

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popula ...

in the 1991–92 Regal Trophy Final during the 1991–92 season at

on Saturday 11 January 1992. After leaving Widnes, Sorensen was the

player-coach A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

Whitehaven Whitehaven is a town and port on the English north west coast and near to the Lake District National Park in Cumbria, England. Historically in Cumberland, it lies by road south-west of Carlisle and to the north of Barrow-in-Furness. It i ...

before controversially joining rivals

Workington Town Workington Town R.L.F.C. is a semi-professional rugby league club playing in Workington in west Cumbria. Their stadium is Derwent Park, which they share with Workington Comets, a speedway team. They became Rugby League Champions in 1951 and ...

in 1995. He resigned a year later before resuming his playing career with Chorley in England, and Cudgen on the Gold Coast.

Legacy

In 2000 Sorensen was inducted as one of the

NZRL The New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league football in New Zealand. SPARC, 2009: 13 The NZRL was founded on 25 April 1910 in preparation for a tour of Great Britain that same year.Coffey and Wood ''T ...

's Legends of League.

References

External links

Wigan Playing Career Details

Widnes Playing Career Details

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sorensen, Kurt 1956 births Living people Auckland rugby league team players Chorley Lynx players Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks players Mount Wellington Warriors players New Zealand national rugby league team players New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in England New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in Australia New Zealand people of Danish descent New Zealand people of Tongan descent New Zealand rugby league coaches New Zealand rugby league players Northcote Tigers players Rugby league props Rugby league second-rows Sydney Roosters players Whitehaven R.L.F.C. coaches Whitehaven R.L.F.C. players Widnes Vikings captains Widnes Vikings players Wigan Warriors players Workington Town coaches