Copper, say, reportedly showing courage (6)
I believe the answer is:
mettle
'courage' is the definition.
(mettle is a kind of courage)
'copper say reportedly' is the wordplay.
'copper say' becomes 'metal' (copper is a kind of metal).
'reportedly' shows a homophone (sound like).
'metal' sounds like 'METTLE'.
'showing' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for mettle that I've seen before include "Spirit, resilience" , "'Nerve, heart, courage (6)'" , "Grit" , "Pluck" , "Fortitude" .)