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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the only unexpected aspect of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was just how taken aback observers seemed when news of the result and its impact for the top of the standings emerged. Although this 3-1 win at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos leading of the table and a significant margin clear of their rivals, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been following the fortunes of both team this season will have been in the least astonished by the result.

For each of the last 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish football between them, reducing the beautiful game to almost a joke in the process. Nine games into the present season it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who number Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be ready to strike while the Glasgow duo iron is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S SLUMP

While a lot of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at their stadium has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to fester unnoticed. The defending title winners have so far lost a considerable number from nine league games this term under their manager. The team's boss has developed the distant look of a individual who constantly consulting his schedule to find out how many days are left until his contract ends, and awoke this morning to learn the number is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in all my time here," he informed reporters following the defeat, after they had questioned his desire for anything resembling a championship battle. "So the motivation is there to attempt to flip the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the dreadful beginning to the season being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the mix. Despite being obliged to operate with a budget that isn't so much a small portion of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have added the money and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the SPL equation. In addition to putting in £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has provided the club exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a modest car. Spotted at Tynecastle on Sunday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed cheering each score with the gusto of a man who had likely realized the bookies had greatly underestimated his side's chances of beating the out-of-sorts title holders, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired team manager the head coach after his side's most recent success, their eighth in nine league matches. "It might be for others on the periphery. It might change perceptions. It might validate opinions that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the players have provided us. Technically, we look in a good place, and certainly physically we look in a good place, so long may that continue. Of course, this is not a situation that the team is used to being in." Correct, Derek, it is not. But the glorious, analytics-backed truth is that for the initial occasion in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that a team besides Celtic or Rangers can win.