Crossbar

No 1673

ACROSS

1 Ran a large bath, at the end, for new recruit at Spurs from Real Madrid (6,4)

8 Was a street urchin gambling? That’s not good (5)

9 Unfortunately, some will fail to start in Gala’s next fixture (4)

11 Digging up valuable elements underground (6)

12 Could a little girl’s small firm run a musical event? (5)

13 Complains about Norwich, Ayr, Gateshead and Stranraer, initially (4)

15 Have scope for a mega mutation in most of 2 down (5)

16 Might an old Man City and England star be left with a trainee? (4)

18 Get the last word in a Mensa meeting; for sure (4)

19 Wait to start a game in the tennis court (5)

20 Some cup matches recalled from the Eighties or Nineties (4)

21 Use a coin to decide when to join a ship (4)

23 Dotes on new arrivals high on drugs (6)

24 A busy little thing had right to have a drink (4)

25 Those recording the results on track must be a bit crazy (4)

26 might put one in an embarrassing position (6)

27 Call a halt to the game when second to first pacemaker (4)

30 Sidle over, moving on a frozen surface (5)

31 David, say, started off with a condiment, for example (4)

32 They may be all out , but they are expected to score regularly (8)

33 Turn over to another page, briefly, in Preston, Tottenham and Oldham, initially (3)

DOWN

1 Feats of agility seen indoors, in PE

(10)

2 Called up, with some hesitation, Scottish Premier League team (7)

3 Is in the mix with an old record producer (3)

4 Greek, etc, in line to hear about old chaser (6,5)

5 Can a court game be played at an equestrian venue? (9)

6 Continue for a little time, but there’s not much left (4,6)

7 Converts a piece into a king, say, on board (6)

10 It’s not new to sift through a mass of debris (5)

14 Was an old US president from Aberdeen, originally? (3)

17 Have the right to put 19 across on an empty drive, first of all (7)

20 There’s a lot there for heavyweights (4)

22 A player ends up involved in transfer (4)

24 Move away at speed, like great sprinter (4)

29 Caught or bowled away from home (3)

29 In favour of a top golfer, in short (3)

Dear Reader,

As a result of the coronavirus pandemic we are suspending competition entries for all our prize crosswords. Puzzles will continue to appear as normal but no entries will be accepted or prizes given.

We hope to return to normal as soon as possible.

Stay safe!

Joy Yates, Editorial Director