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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the sole unexpected aspect of Heart of Midlothian's victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback observers seemed when reports of the outcome and its impact for the top of the standings circulated. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which leaves the Edinburgh side leading of the table and a significant margin ahead of their rivals, was seismic in nature, nobody who has been tracking the progress of both squad this campaign will have been in the least astonished by the result.

For each of the last 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, turning the beautiful game to something of a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the present campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – might just be ready to strike while the Glasgow duo iron is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

While much of the attention in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being suffered by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that the title holders' slightly less terminal decay has been able to fester unnoticed. The reigning champions have already dropped a considerable number from nine fixtures this season under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has developed the distant look of a individual who constantly consulting his Google calendar to see how many days are remaining until his deal expires, and woke up this day to learn the answer is 246.

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

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the horrific start to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his players could normally be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to start strongly, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the fray. Despite being forced to operate with a war-chest that isn't so much a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the money and expertise of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership mix. In addition to putting in ten million pounds during the summer, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to discover hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a modest car. Seen at their home venue on matchday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be seen celebrating each goal with the gusto of a person who had likely realized the oddsmakers had massively misjudged his side's chances of defeating the out-of-sorts champions, and placed large bets as a result.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his side's most recent victory, their eighth in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for those on the outside looking in. It could alter perceptions. It might validate opinions that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the players have provided us. In terms of skill, we look in a good place, and certainly physically we seem in a good place, so we hope it persists. Of course, it's not a position that this club is used to being in." Correct, the manager, it isn't. But the wonderful, analytics-backed truth is that for the initial occasion in ages, Scottish football might actually have a title race that a team besides Celtic or Rangers can claim.