Crossword Genius

Very neat, smooth bridge broken by sharp hammer (5,3,4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

spick and span

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

'very neat' is the definition.
'spick and span' can be an answer for 'neat' (thesaurus). I am not certain of the 'very' bit.

'smooth bridge broken by sharp hammer' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'bridge' could be 'span' (synonyms) and 'span' is present in the answer.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for spick and span that I've seen before include "Spruced up" , "Clean and well looked after" , "Spotless" , "immaculate" , "Very neat and clean" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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