The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 plus 5 letter word LACROSSE STICK
L
A
C
R
O
S
S
E
S
T
I
C
K
Buddy explains!
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.