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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole surprising element of Hearts' triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback observers seemed when news of the result and its impact for the summit of the table emerged. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which puts the Edinburgh side top of the table and a significant margin clear of Celtic, was seismic in scale, no one who has been following the fortunes of both squad this campaign will have been in the least shocked by the final score.

For each of the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish football between them, reducing fitba to almost a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the present season it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their famous supporters – might just be ready to strike while the Old Firm iron is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While a lot of the attention in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being suffered by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at their stadium has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to worsen below the radar. The defending title winners have already dropped a considerable number from their opening nine league games this season under their manager. The Celtic manager has acquired the distant look of a individual who constantly checking his Google calendar to find out how many days are remaining until his contract ends, and awoke this day to discover the number is 246.

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

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the dreadful start to the campaign being endured by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his men could normally be anticipated to get away with their own failure to roar out of the traps, but this year an capital city challenger has entered the fray. In spite of being forced to function with a war-chest that isn't so much a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the investment and expertise of a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. As well as investing ten million pounds during the summer, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts sole use of his highly confidential analytics-based Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to discover unpolished gems 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 mid-range family saloon. Spotted at their home venue on Sunday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be seen cheering each goal with the enthusiasm of a person who had almost certainly realized the oddsmakers had greatly underestimated his team's prospects of defeating the struggling champions, and filled his boots as a result.

COACH'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team's most recent success, their eighth in nine league matches. "It might be for those on the outside looking in. It might change perceptions. It may confirm opinions that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the lads have given us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and definitely physically we seem in a good place, so we hope it persists. Naturally, this is not a situation that the team is used to being in." No, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed reality is that for the initial occasion in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a championship battle that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.