Crossword Genius

Guess how cannon was fired at midnight? (4,2,3,4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

shot in the dark

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'guess' is the definition.
(I have seen 'Wild guess' mean 'shot in the dark' so perhaps 'guess' could also mean 'shot in the dark')

'cannon was fired at midnight?' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'fired' could be 'shot' (shooting is a kind of firing) and 'shot' is found in the answer.
'at' could be 'in' (synonymous in some cases - eg at school, in school) and 'in' is found in the answer.
The remaining letters 'thedark' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

'how' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for shot in the dark that I've seen before include "Blind guess" , "Pure guess" , "Wild guess" , "Guess based on little information" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
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