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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole unexpected aspect of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which surprised people appeared when news of the result and its impact for the top of the table circulated. While this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos top of the table and eight points clear of their rivals, was seismic in nature, no one who has been following the progress of both squad this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

For each of the past four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish football between them, turning the beautiful game to something of a punchline in the process. Several matches into the present season it has become apparent that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, 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

While a lot of the attention in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being suffered by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at Ibrox has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to fester unnoticed. The reigning champions have so far lost a considerable number from their opening nine fixtures this term under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has acquired the distant look of a man who constantly consulting his Google calendar to find out how many time are remaining until his contract expires, and woke up this day to learn the answer is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in all my time at the club," he told reporters following the defeat, after they had doubted his desire for any kind of a title fight. "So the motivation is there to attempt to reverse the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the dreadful beginning to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be anticipated 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 operate with a war-chest that isn't so much a small portion of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the investment and expertise of a renowned businessman to the SPL equation. In addition to putting in ten million pounds during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has granted Hearts exclusive use of his top secret data-driven proprietary scouting player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to discover unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at their home venue on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his team's chances of defeating the struggling champions, and placed large bets as a result.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his side's latest success, their eighth win in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for those on the periphery. It might change perceptions. It may confirm opinions that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the lads have provided us. Technically, we appear in a good place, and certainly physically we look in a good place, so we hope it persists. Naturally, this is not a situation that the team is accustomed to being in." No, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, data-driven reality is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might genuinely have a championship battle that somebody other than the traditional powers can win.