Crossword Genius

Youthful hope thus to clear toilet bowl! (2,3,5,5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

in the first flush

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

'youthful hope thus' is the definition.
I don't know anything about this answer so I can't tell whether this works.

'clear toilet bowl' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'clear' could be 'inthe' (synonyms) and 'inthe' is located in the answer.
'toilet' could be 'flush' (flush toilet is a kind of toilet) and 'flush' is present in the answer.
The remaining letters 'first' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

'to' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

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