Crossword Genius

Pad out the team and starve out mid-off (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

overstaff

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

'pad out the team' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this definition defines the answer.

'starve out mid-off' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
an anagram of 'starve' is 'versta' which is present in the answer.
The remaining letters 'off' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

'and' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for overstaff that I've seen before include "Provide with too many workers" , "forming more than five lines?" , "Put too many workers in" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
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