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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the only surprising aspect of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was just how surprised observers appeared when reports of the result and its impact for the summit of the table emerged. While this convincing victory at their home ground, which puts the Jambos leading of the league and a significant margin clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been tracking the progress of either team this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the result.

For each of the last four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish football between them, turning the beautiful game to something of a joke in the meantime. Nine games into the present campaign it has become apparent that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – could be prepared to strike while the Glasgow duo influence is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While a lot of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at their stadium has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decline has been able to worsen below the radar. The defending title winners have so far lost 10 points from nine fixtures this term under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has developed the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop consulting his Google calendar to find out how many time are remaining until his contract expires, and woke up this morning to discover the number is 246.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure here," he informed the media following the loss, after they had doubted his desire for anything resembling a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is there to attempt to flip the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the dreadful beginning to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could normally be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to start strongly, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has joined the fray. In spite of being forced to operate with a budget that is not just a small portion of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have added the money and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. As well as investing £10m during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has granted the club sole use of his top secret data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to unearth hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a modest car. Seen at their home venue on Sunday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be seen cheering each goal with the gusto of a person who had likely realized the bookies had massively underestimated his side's prospects of beating the struggling title holders, and placed large bets as a result.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his side's most recent victory, their eighth win in nine league matches. "It might be for others on the outside looking in. It could alter opinions. It may confirm views that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the lads have provided us. Technically, we appear in a good place, and definitely in fitness we look in a good place, so we hope it persists. Naturally, it's not a position that the team is accustomed to being in." No, Derek, it is not. But the glorious, data-driven truth is that for the first time in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that somebody other than the traditional powers can claim.