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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole unexpected aspect of Hearts' victory over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was just how surprised observers seemed when reports of the result and its impact for the summit of the standings emerged. Although this 3-1 win at their home ground, which puts the Jambos top of the table and eight points ahead of their rivals, was seismic in nature, no one who has been tracking the progress of either team this campaign will have been in the least shocked by the final score.

For each of the last 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish football between them, turning fitba to almost a punchline in the process. Nine games into the current season it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be ready to strike while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

While much of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at their stadium has meant that the title holders' slightly less terminal decay has been allowed to worsen unnoticed. The reigning champions have already lost a considerable number from their opening nine league games this season under their manager. The team's boss has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop checking his Google calendar to find out how many time are remaining until his contract ends, and awoke this day to discover the number is 246.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure at the club," he informed the media following the defeat, after they had questioned his desire for any kind of a championship battle. "So the motivation is there to attempt to reverse the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the dreadful start to the season being endured by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his players could normally be expected to escape scrutiny for their own failure to start strongly, but this year an capital city challenger has joined the fray. Despite being obliged to operate with a budget that is not just a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have added the money and expertise of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership equation. In addition to investing £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has granted Hearts exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to unearth hidden talents 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. Seen at Tynecastle on matchday wearing a club colours, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each score with the gusto of a person who had almost certainly noticed the bookies had greatly misjudged his team's chances of defeating the struggling champions, and filled his boots accordingly.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded team manager the head coach after his team's most recent victory, their eighth win in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It could alter perceptions. It might validate opinions that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have given us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and certainly in fitness we look in a good place, so we hope it persists. Naturally, it's not a position that this club is used to being in." Correct, Derek, it is not. But the wonderful, data-driven reality is that for the first time in ages, Scottish football might actually have a title race that a team other than the traditional powers can win.