Rudar edged past Iskra 1:0 in the first round of the Second League regular season on Saturday evening. The result leaves the hosts four points adrift of sixth-placed Iskra after both sides had played four matches each. Rudar now sit ninth in the table while Iskra remain in sixth.
Iskra came into the fixture with more momentum, winning two of their previous four games. They had taken a 4:0 victory over Internacional Podgorica on 8 August before losing 2:0 to Budućnost Podgorica three days later. Rudar's recent form showed a different pattern — they had won 5:0 against Brskovo on 3 June but followed that with a 2:1 victory over the same side on 29 May.
What matters here is the narrow margin. Iskra controlled their position in the table until this match, but the hosts let the game slip through their fingers. A single goal separated the sides, and that proved enough to shift the balance in Rudar's favour. Iskra will look at the result and wonder whether they should have been more clinical.
Rudar's previous meeting with Iskra ended 3:1 in the visitors' favour on 24 May. Since then they have picked up points against Brskovo and held Mladost Leškopole to a goalless draw. The history between them adds an edge to this result — Rudar finally turned the corner against the side that had beaten them comfortably months earlier.
The table tells the story without embellishment. Rudar move to four points from four games, while Iskra hold six points after two wins and two defeats. Neither side has drawn a match yet, and that pattern is unlikely to change with just one round played. The gap between them remains two points, and that is where the season starts.