CRYPTIC CROSSWORD

ACROSS

1 Rocky Balboa suffers a bunch with skates and sticks (7,6) 9 Trollop in court with the face of Emily Brontë (9)

10 Farm animal’s hole not finished (5)

11 Follow a trail through outskirts (3)

12 Attack conclusion about loss, defending job (11)

13 Cover that ship with two articles (7)

14 Doctor a thug and soldier (7) 16 Ticked off plus about Chicago star (7)

19 Pole on board holding sheep’s life jacket (3,4)

21 Playing the horn, Dad’s missing a player (5-6) 23 Right—I understand cheer (3) 25 John, taking time, doubled gambler’s game (5)

26 He spoke about Inuit’s origin and seemed uncertain (9) 27 Flyers gala Cam arranged for team in Canada (7,6)

DOWN

1 Bills team in Milwaukee (5) 2 Delicate old cloth put in box in an office (7) 3 Dangerous reptile mad at gorilla (9) 4 Scandalous event, loss of power around the 6th of January (7) 5 Gave a hand to Ms. Midler in commercial (7)

6 Mostly dressing bird (5) 7 Classic Pacino film excited copiers (7)

8 Bum hung out after opening of dessert goody (8) 13 Fight with cunning, sustaining energy in spots (8) 15 Loosely based act on deal gone awry (9) 17 Ancient Christian song brought back by jerk (7) 18 Play about church money spent in old Greece (7) 19 Admirable trait poem captured by mentioning initially filthy place (7)

20 Mistake set back arrival in silent setting (7) 22 Legendary giant fish (5) 24 Underworld ghosts beheaded (5)