Plain German still held it back (9)
I believe the answer is:
serengeti
'plain' is the definition.
(I know that Serengeti is a plain)
'german still held it back' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'german' could be 'g' (abbreviation) and 'g' is present in the answer.
'still' could be 'serene' (I've seen this in another clue) and 'serene' is found in the leftover letters.
'it' could be 't' (abbreviation. e.g. in 'tis) and 't' is found in the answer.
A single letter 'i' remains which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for serengeti that I've seen before include "Afr. plain; green site (anag.)" , "Wildlife preserve (and National Park) in Tanzania" , "region in Tanzania" , "Green ties (anag.)" , "Tanzanian national park area" .)