Toughs out gaol on his reformation (9)

I believe the answer is:

hooligans

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

'toughs' is the definition.
(I know this)

'gaol on his reformation' is the wordplay.
'reformation' is an anagram indicator.
'gaol'+'on'+'his'='gaolonhis'
'gaolonhis' with letters rearranged gives 'HOOLIGANS'.

'out' acts as a link.
I am not very happy about this link. It may be part of another bit of the clue.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for hooligans that I've seen before include "More than one tough" , "football louts" , "Violent troublemakers" , "delinquents" , "Thugs" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.