Crossword Genius

Western crew makes impact (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

weight

'impact' is the definition.
(I know that weight is a type of bias)

'western crew' is the wordplay.
'western' becomes 'w'.
'crew' becomes 'eight' (an eight-person rowing team).
'w'+'eight'='WEIGHT'

'makes' is the link.

(Other definitions for weight that I've seen before include "Heavy object" , "Relative heaviness" , "Something to lose" , "Significance" , "Importance, heaviness" .)

I've seen this clue in The Sun.
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