Is separated, in a way, from one who left the match early (8)
I believe the answer is:
divorcee
'one who left the match early' is the definition.
The answer is a person as well as being a singular noun. This is suggested by the definition.
'is separated in a way' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'way' could be 'e' (Compass direction - East) and 'e' is found within the answer.
The remaining letters 'divorce' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
'from' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for divorcee that I've seen before include "Legally separated person" , "split personality?" , "One's marriage has been dissolved" , "person no longer in union" , "One's broken up" .)