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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the sole surprising aspect of Heart of Midlothian's victory over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was just how surprised people appeared when reports of the result and its impact for the top of the standings circulated. Although this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos leading of the league and a significant margin clear of Celtic, was seismic in nature, nobody who has been following the progress of both squad this campaign will have been in the least astonished by the final score.

For each of the past four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish league between them, turning the beautiful game to almost a joke 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 Ken Stott among their famous supporters – could be prepared to make their move while the Glasgow duo iron is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although a lot of the focus in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at their stadium has meant that Celtic's comparatively less severe decline has been able to fester unnoticed. The defending title winners have already dropped 10 points from their opening nine fixtures this term under their manager. The team's boss has developed the thousand-yard stare of a individual who constantly checking his schedule to find out how many days are remaining until his deal ends, and awoke this day to learn the number is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in all my time here," he informed the media following the defeat, after they had questioned his desire for anything resembling a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is present to attempt to reverse the levels that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the horrific start to the season being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be anticipated to get away with their own inability to start strongly, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the fray. Despite being forced to operate with a budget that isn't so much a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the investment and expertise of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership equation. In addition to putting in ten million pounds during the summer, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts sole use of his highly confidential data-driven Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis 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 lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at their home venue on matchday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely noticed the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his side's chances of defeating the struggling champions, and placed large bets accordingly.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer the head coach after his side's latest victory, their eighth in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the outside looking in. It might change perceptions. It might validate opinions that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the lads have provided us. Technically, we appear in a good place, and definitely physically we seem in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Naturally, this is not a situation that this club is accustomed to being in." Correct, the manager, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that a team other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.