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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole surprising element of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish Premiership was just how surprised observers appeared when reports of the result and its impact for the top of the table emerged. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which puts the Edinburgh side leading of the table and a significant margin ahead of Celtic, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of either team this season will have been in the least astonished by the result.

Over the past 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish football between them, turning fitba to almost a punchline in the process. Several matches into the current campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be prepared to make their move while the Glasgow duo iron is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although much of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at Ibrox has meant that Celtic's slightly less terminal decline has been able to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have so far lost a considerable number from their opening nine fixtures this term under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has developed the thousand-yard stare of a individual who constantly checking his Google calendar to see how many time are left until his deal ends, and woke up this morning to discover the number is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time here," he told reporters following the defeat, after they had doubted his desire for anything resembling a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is there to try and reverse the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the dreadful beginning to the season being endured by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his men could normally be expected to get away with their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has joined the fray. Despite being obliged to function with a war-chest that is not just a small portion of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the investment and expertise of Tony Bloom to the SPL mix. In addition to putting in £10m during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has provided the club sole use of his top secret analytics-based Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to discover hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a modest car. Spotted at their home venue on matchday sporting a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be observed celebrating each goal with the gusto of a man who had likely noticed the bookies had greatly misjudged his side's chances of defeating the out-of-sorts title holders, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his team's latest success, their eighth in nine league matches. "It might be for those on the periphery. It could alter perceptions. It might validate views that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the lads have provided us. In terms of skill, we appear in a good place, and certainly physically we seem in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, it's not a position that this club is accustomed to being in." Correct, the manager, it isn't. But the wonderful, data-driven reality is that for the first time in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that a team other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.