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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the only unexpected element of Heart of Midlothian's victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback observers appeared when news of the outcome and its impact for the top of the table emerged. While this convincing victory at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos leading of the league and eight points clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been following the fortunes of both team this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

Over the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, reducing the beautiful game to something of a punchline in the process. Nine games into the present season it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – might just be prepared to strike while the Glasgow duo influence is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S SLUMP

Although much of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being suffered by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the situation at their stadium has resulted in that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have already lost a considerable number from their opening nine fixtures this season under their manager. The Celtic manager has developed the distant look of a man who can't stop consulting his schedule to find out how many days are left until his deal expires, and awoke this day to discover the answer is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time at the club," he informed the media following the defeat, after they had questioned his desire for any kind of a title fight. "So the motivation is there to attempt to reverse the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the horrific beginning to the campaign being experienced by Rangers, Rodgers and his players could typically be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but this year an capital city challenger has joined the fray. In spite of being obliged to function with a war-chest that is not just a small portion of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have introduced the investment and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership mix. In addition to investing ten million pounds during the summer, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to unearth hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a modest car. Seen at their home venue on matchday wearing a club colours, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed cheering each goal with the gusto of a man who had likely noticed the bookies had massively misjudged his side's chances of beating the out-of-sorts champions, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his side's most recent victory, their eighth win in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It could alter perceptions. It may confirm opinions that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the players have provided us. Technically, we appear in a good place, and certainly physically we look in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Of course, this is not a situation that the team is used to being in." No, Derek, it isn't. But the wonderful, data-driven truth is that for the initial occasion in many years, the Scottish game might actually have a championship battle that a team other than Celtic or Rangers can win.