Crossword Genius

Stake everything you raised, it'll get you nowhere (5,5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

blind alley

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

'it'll get you nowhere' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this defines the answer.

'stake everything you raised' is the wordplay.
'stake' becomes 'blind' (I can't explain this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'everything' becomes 'all' (all things).
'you' becomes 'ye' (historical version of 'you').
'raised' says the letters should be written in reverse (going up in a down clue).
'ye' backwards is 'ey'.
'blind'+'all'+'ey'='BLIND ALLEY'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for blind alley that I've seen before include "Cul-de-sac" , "dead-end position" , "no escape route" , "no progress there" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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