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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the sole surprising aspect of Hearts' victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish Premiership was just how taken aback observers appeared when news of the result and its consequences for the summit of the standings emerged. Although this 3-1 win at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos top of the table and a significant margin ahead of Celtic, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes 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 the Old Firm have divided the Scottish league between them, reducing the beautiful game to almost a joke in the process. Several matches into the current campaign it has become clear that Hearts – who number Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – could be ready to make their move while the Old Firm influence is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

Although a lot of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decline has been able to worsen unnoticed. The defending title winners have already dropped a considerable number from their opening nine fixtures this season under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a man who constantly checking his schedule to see how many time are left until his contract ends, and woke up this day to learn 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 present to try and flip the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the horrific beginning to the season being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his men could normally be expected to get away with their own failure to start strongly, but this year an capital city challenger has entered the fray. Despite being forced to operate with a war-chest that is not just a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the money and expertise of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership equation. As well as investing ten million pounds during the summer, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts sole use of his top secret data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to unearth unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at their home venue on matchday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be seen celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a person who had almost certainly noticed the oddsmakers had greatly underestimated his side's chances of beating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots accordingly.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said bearded team manager the head coach after his side's most recent victory, their eighth win in nine league matches. "It might be for those on the outside looking in. It could alter perceptions. It may confirm views that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the players have given us. In terms of skill, we appear in a strong position, and certainly in fitness we seem in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Of course, it's not a position that this club is accustomed to being in." Correct, Derek, it isn't. But the wonderful, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in many years, the Scottish game might genuinely have a championship battle that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can win.