Crossword Genius

Boasted of oarspeople (4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

crew

I believe this clue is a double definition.

'boasted' is the first definition.
('crew' is past tense of 'crow', meaning to boast)

'oarspeople' is the second definition.
(crew of a rowing boat)

'of' acts as a link.

(Other definitions for crew that I've seen before include "They operate ships or aircraft, say" , "Ship's operators" , "Provided a wake-up call" , "Group of operators" , "eight > was sounding shrilly" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
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