Second in order of preference (4,4)
I believe the answer is:
next best
'second in order of preference' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
This is the entire clue.
(Other definitions for next best that I've seen before include "Second in order of preference" , "Not quite the top quality" , "Not quite the finest" , "Not the first in order of preference, but following closely" .)