It's no good either way (3)
I believe the answer is:
dud
'either way' is the definition.
I cannot understand how the rest of the clue works.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for dud that I've seen before include "A palindromic failure" , "Failing in its function" , "Bullet that fails to fire" , "Just a palindromic flop" , "Defective" .)