Nothing too difficult today so a very quick, though pleasant, solve. Only two clues required dictionary assistance to confirm the wordplay (the container in 10ac) or the answer (16dn) but both were entered from the wordplay/checked letters and then verified afterwards.
Across
1 SAMPLE MP (one with majority) in SALE (rugby side)
4 BACCARAT C[hic] CARA (woman) in BAT (one out at night)
9 ANNOY [t]ANNOY (speaker short of time)
10 BETE NOIRE E (English) TEN (figure) in BOIRE (drink, in French)
11 PREFACE REF (match official) in PACE (step)
12 ELEANOR LEAN (list) in ROE (eggs) reversed
13 DROP dd
14 STEALTHY TEAL (duck) T[raverse] H[abitat] in S[urre]Y
17 ANGLESEY ANGLE (devious motive) YES (certainly) reversed
19 ECHO hidden in ‘restrictivE CHOice’
22 BIRETTA *(TRIBE) TA (sign of gratitude)
24 INERTIA *(I RETAIN)
25 ON THIN ICE dd
26 MIMIC MI MI (two notes) C (chapter)
27 BROOKLYN homophone of ‘Brooke’ (poet) L (line) NY (New York) reversed
28 STANZA A NZ (bunch of Kiwis) in STA (station)
Down
1 STAMPEDE cd – neat = cattle
2 MINNESOTA *(NOMINATES)
3 LAYMAN LAY (song) MAN (crew)
5 AT THE SAME TIME *(MATE HATES ITEM)
6 CONTEXT CON (read) TEXT (message on mobile)
7 REIGN homophone of ‘rein’ (something to restrain)
8 THEORY HE (ambassador) in [s]TORY (tale initially discounted)
10 BREATHE EASILY d&cd
15 YACHTSMAN cd
16 FOCACCIA F (fellow) CC (two hundred) in *(CIAO) A – cheer = food. “A flat loaf of Italian bread made with olive oil and topped with salt, herbs etc” according to Chambers and COED and Collins has “a flat Italian bread made with olive oil and yeast” but the translation according to an Italian/English dictionary is “a type of pizza or a bun”.
18 GATWICK G[row] AT WICK (place in Scotland)
20 ABSORB AB (sailor) SORB (service) – sorb = the service tree, the wild service tree, or (sometimes) the rowan tree (Chambers)
21 HELMET HELM (direct) E[mergency] T[eams]
23 RATIO hidden in ‘celebRATIOns’
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