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Canny guards somewhat short of rupees, like dad (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

fatherly

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'canny guards somewhat short of rupees like dad' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this defines the answer.

'canny guards somewhat short of rupees' is the wordplay.
'canny' becomes 'fly' (both can mean sharp or clever).
'guards' is an insertion indicator (inserted letters are guarded).
'somewhat short of' becomes 'athe' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should believe this answer much more).
'rupees' becomes 'r' (abbreviation for rupees).
'athe'+'r'='ather'
'fly' enclosing 'ather' is 'FATHERLY'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for fatherly that I've seen before include "Being kind" , "Just like dad" , "Paternal" , "In (male) parental way" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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