Prepare to sail away from the players (4,3)
I believe the answer is:
cast off
'from the players' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this definition defines the answer.
'prepare to sail away' is the wordplay.
'prepare to sail' becomes 'cast' (I can't explain this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'away' becomes 'off' (synonyms).
'cast'+'off'='CAST-OFF'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for cast off that I've seen before include "no longer required" , "Rejected" , "Stop knitting - discarded - prepare to sail away" , "unwanted garment" , "Stop knitting - prepare for sea" .)