The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word APOLOGIA
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
A
P
O
L
O
G
I
A
More clues leading to the result APOLOGIA
- Jersey soldier in anti-aircraft defence
- It justifies a game I introduced to Georgia
- A game soldier first to attempt a written defence
- Explorer in a private area requires defence
- A sport — I’ll occupy half of game in defence
- Written defence of a game – soldier has one
- Game with Gillingham initially in a state — defence …
- A game with intermittently daring revolutionary defence
- First-class try cut short a rising defence
- Game soldier entered as defence
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "defence" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case defence = apologia.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does APOLOGIA mean?
APOLOGIA noun- A written defense of a position or belief.