Annoys son without good reason (8)

I believe the answer is:

needless

'without good reason' is the definition.

'annoys son' is the wordplay.
'annoys' becomes 'needles' (I've seen this before).
'son' becomes 's'.
'needles'+'s'='NEEDLESS'

(Other definitions for needless that I've seen before include "Excessive" , "Uncalled-for" , "Lessened, being without good cause" , "Unneccessary and unwarranted" , "for no good reason" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.

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