Crossword Genius

Steal a male bird from a Cockney (4,4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

half inch

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

'steal' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'a male bird from a cockney' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'a' is present in the answer.
'bird' could be 'finch' (finch is a kind of bird) and 'finch' is found within the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for half inch that I've seen before include "minuscule distance" , "Measure" , "Steal" , "short distance" , "Lift" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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