Crossword Genius

Young girl with old rope (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

lasso

'rope' is the definition.
(lassoing is a kind of roping)

'young girl with old' is the wordplay.
'young girl' becomes 'lass' ('lass' can be a synonym of 'young girl').
'with' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'old' becomes 'o' (common abbreviation eg in OE for Old English).
'lass'+'o'='LASSO'

(Other definitions for lasso that I've seen before include "A cowboy's looped lariat" , "Cowcatcher" , "Rope for a cowboy" , "Long noosed rope used to catch animals" , "Catch (steers) with a rope" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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