When a sportsman’s shot he’s expected to make a recovery (9)
I believe the answer is:
retriever
'when a sportsman's shot he's expected to make a recovery' is the definition.
Although both the answer and definition are singular nouns, I can't see how one could define the other.
This is all the clue.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for retriever that I've seen before include "Dog bred to fetch game" , "Dog that fetches for its master" , "Gun-dog, may be golden" , "Working dog" , "He rescues" .)