Sailor gets deserter brought back (3)
I believe the answer is:
tar
'sailor' is the definition.
(tar is a kind of sailor)
'deserter brought back' is the wordplay.
'deserter' becomes 'rat' (I've seen this before).
'brought back' says the letters should be written in reverse.
'rat' written backwards gives 'TAR'.
'gets' is the link.
(Other definitions for tar that I've seen before include "one may need to pay on boat" , "Informal sailor or road surfacing material" , "Hearty" , "Old salt or liquid from coal" , "Old salt, sailor" .)