Father torn apart by time and sponsorship (9)
I believe the answer is:
patronage
'sponsorship' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'father torn apart by time' is the wordplay.
'father' becomes 'pa' (pa can mean dad or father).
'torn apart' becomes 'tron' (I can't justify this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'by' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'time' becomes 'age' (an age is a period of time).
'pa'+'tron'+'age'='PATRONAGE'
'and' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for patronage that I've seen before include "custom in restaurant?" , "Condescension" , "Support" , "Regular custom" , "supporting role" .)