Across
Back strike — a rise is most important (9)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Fifteensquared have:
reversal of RAP [strike] + A + MOUNT 10 USAGE : U[niversity] SAGE [man of learning] 11 COD WARS : cryptic definition, referring to the fishing disputes of the 1950s and 1970s 12 LOBELIA : OBELI [daggers] in reversal of AL [Capone] I liked this one 13 LATER : anagram of ALERT 14 FIG LEAVES : a witty cryptic definition [not quite ‘first-day’, if we want to be picky!] 16 TERRITORIAL ARMY : cryptic definition 19 REINFORCE : REIN [check] + FORCE [power] 21 SEPIA : I [one] in reversal of APES [copies] 22 HUMERUS : HUM [throbbing] + reversal of SURE 23 DUNKIRK : DUN [dingy] + KIRK [church]: I thought ‘place in British history’ was a rather loose definition 24 LOTTO : LOT [a great deal] + TO: I didn’t think there was a great deal to this clue but I suppose we were intended to suspect it was a card game 25 EYE STRAIN : EYES [monitors] + TRAIN [public transport]
Employment of university man of learning (5)
Main differences between Iceland and Britain (3,4)
Plant daggers in Capone's back (7)
Alert for change in the future (5)
First-day covers? (3,6)
Ground troops? (11,4)
Check power of support (9)
Returned copies, including one in colour (5)
Bone throbbing certain to return (7)
Dingy church with place in British history (7)
There's a great deal to this game (5)
Monitors public transport complaint (3,6)
Down
Does he take a chance, or just think about it? (10)
New director has yet to be paid (8)
One member bearing harm (6)
Projects only just developed (4)
A prison camp child growing up (10)
Fitness aid for boxer lacking ring (4-4)
Ballerina cut off a physiologist (6)
Thanks be given first for letter from Greece (4)
Grows in waves (10)
Having a heavenly frolic? (10)
Mean to gather around the port (8)
Alec rips off reproductions (8)
Resident at home with his wife (6)
Music that's played as composed, not as a variation (6)
Derelict vessel may be incredible (4)
An act of duplicity? (4)
Type letters or click words in the clue