Crossword Genius

Suppose it’s the southern part of Ayrshire (3)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

say

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'suppose' is the definition.
(synonyms)

'the southern part of ayrshire' is the wordplay.
'the southern' becomes 's' (abbreviation).
'part of ayrshire' becomes 'ay' (I can't justify this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
's'+'ay'='SAY'

'it's' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for say that I've seen before include "Opportunity to influence < > state" , "Utter words" , "Speak, declare" , "Let us suppose" , "Utter; e.g." .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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