Pained expression covered by reporters showing skill (7)
I believe the answer is:
prowess
'skill' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'pained expression covered by reporters' is the wordplay.
'pained expression' becomes 'ow' (exclamation of pain).
'covered by' indicates putting letters inside.
'reporters' becomes 'press' (members of the press).
'ow' inserted inside 'press' is 'PROWESS'.
'showing' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for prowess that I've seen before include "'Skill, expertise (7)'" , "Mastery - talent" , "Superior skill or ability" , "Acquired skill(s)" , "Accomplishment" .)