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Soldier and sailor about to go on leave (6,3)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

desert rat

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'soldier' is the definition.
(nickname for a soldier from 7th Armoured Division)

'sailor about to go on leave' is the wordplay.
'sailor' becomes 'tar' (tar can mean a sailor).
'about' is a reversal indicator.
'to' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other) (I've seen this in other clues).
'go on leave' becomes 'desert' (I can't explain this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'tar' in reverse letter order is 'rat'.
'rat' put after 'desert' is 'DESERT RAT'.

'and' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for desert rat that I've seen before include "WWII soldier" , "Tommy" , "One of Rommel's nemesis" , "See soldier" , "Fighting man" .)

I've seen this clue in The Sunday Times and The Times.
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