Crossword Genius

Naval officer has something to go on, gathering men (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

commodore

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

'naval officer' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'something to go on gathering men' is the wordplay.
'something to go on' becomes 'commode' (I can't explain this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'gathering' indicates putting letters inside (gather can mean to acquire or bring in).
'men' becomes 'OR' (Other Ranks: non-commissioned soldiers).
'commode' enclosing 'or' is 'COMMODORE'.

'has' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for commodore that I've seen before include "Naval officer" , "senior officer" , "officer, surely?" , "Naval rank junior to rear-admiral" , "President of a yacht club" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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