Crossword Genius

Fail removing odd bits of sacred drinking vessel (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

tankard

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'drinking vessel' is the definition.
(I know that tankard is a type of drinking vessel)

'fail removing odd bits of sacred' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'fail' could be 'tank' (informal term meaning to fail financially) and 'tank' is present in the answer.
The remaining letters 'ard' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for tankard that I've seen before include "Beer glass" , "something to drink from" , "A drinking mug with handle" , "Drinker's pot" , "Beer-mug" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
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