The Police team secured the top match of the postponed first round of the Iraqi Stars League after defeating its traditional rival Al-Zawraa with two goals to one, in a match held at Al-Zawraa Stadium amidst a large crowd and enthusiastic atmosphere reflecting the importance of the derby between the capital's poles.

Both teams entered the confrontation with a fast pace from the first minutes, with the Police initiating to impose its attacking style, managing to open the scoring early through its professional Lionel Atiba in the 11th minute, benefiting from an organized attack he successfully finished inside the net, granting the 'Green Harp' an early advantage that disrupted the hosts’ calculations.

Al-Zawraa did not delay in its reaction, intensifying its offensive attempts seeking to equalize, and succeeded in achieving its goal in the 21st minute through Mohamed Qasim who capitalized on a clear opportunity and placed the ball in the net, bringing the match back to square one and reigniting the stands' atmosphere. Attempts continued from both sides without a change in the score, ending the first half with a positive draw, one goal for each team.

In the second half, the competition's tempo increased with a slight advantage for the Police, who appeared more focused in the final third of the field, with Atiba returning to confirm his remarkable presence by scoring his second personal goal and his team's in the 68th minute, following a quick attack that confused Al-Zawraa's defense and granted his team the lead again.

The Police's task became more complicated in the 79th minute when they were forced to complete the match with ten players after their Nigerian professional Abdul Majeed Bou Bakr was sent off following his second warning, which granted Al-Zawraa an advantage but they failed to capitalize on it.

With this valuable victory, the Police raised its tally to 41 points, reinforcing its position in second place and continuing its pursuit of the leading teams, while Al-Zawraa's tally froze at 31 points in seventh place, continuing its series of unstable results and further distancing from the competition circle in the standings.