Was inclined to need money for the ante, maybe (5)
I believe the answer is:
leant
'was inclined' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'money for the ante maybe' is the wordplay.
'money' becomes 'l' (L can mean 'pounds'**).
'for' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'maybe' indicates an anagram.
'ante' with letters rearranged gives 'eant'.
'l'+'eant'='LEANT'
'to need' is the link.
I am not very happy about this link. Some or all of it may belong to another bit of the clue.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for leant that I've seen before include "Had tendency" , "Tipped" , "pressed on" , "Tilted" , "Advanced" .)