Final stage (7)
I believe the answer is:
endgame
<span class="explanation-format__ClueExplanation">'<span class="explanation-format__original">final stage</span>' is the definition.<br/ ><span class="explanation-format__explanation">(final stage of a chess game)</span><br/ ><br/ >This is all the clue.<br/ ></span>
(Other definitions for endgame that I've seen before include "Final stage in a contest" , "when there are few men left" , "moves before mating" , "Denouement (chess)" , "close to board meeting" .)