Maybe Ipswich rowing crew said to choke (9)

I believe the answer is:

suffocate

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'to choke' is the definition.
(I know that suffocate is a kind of buy the farm)

I cannot understand how the rest of the clue works.

(Other definitions for suffocate that I've seen before include "Kill by blocking the air passages" , "Smother" , "Stifle" , "choke" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.

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