Crossword Genius

Energy displayed by a leader of second crew (1,4,2,5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

a head of steam

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'energy displayed' is the definition.
I don't know anything about this answer so I can't judge whether it can be defined by this definition.

'a leader of second crew' is the wordplay.
'leader' becomes 'head' (head is a kind of leader).
'second' becomes 's' (common abbreviation).
'crew' becomes 'team' (both can mean a group of colleagues).
'a'+'head'+'of'+'s'+'team'='A HEAD OF STEAM'

'by' acts as a link.

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I've seen this clue in The Irish Times.
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