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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the only unexpected aspect of Hearts' triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which surprised observers seemed when reports of the result and its consequences for the summit of the table emerged. While this 3-1 win at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos top of the table and a significant margin ahead of their rivals, was seismic in scale, nobody who has been following the fortunes of either team this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

For each of the past 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to almost a joke in the process. Several matches into the current campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – could be ready to make their move while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

While a lot of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the situation at their stadium has meant that the title holders' slightly less terminal decay has been allowed to fester unnoticed. The defending title winners have already dropped a considerable number from their opening nine league games this term under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has acquired the distant look of a man who constantly consulting his Google calendar to find out how many time are left until his deal ends, and woke up this morning to learn the answer is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time at the club," he told the media following the defeat, after they had doubted his desire for any kind of a title fight. "Therefore the drive is present to try and reverse the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the horrific beginning to the season being endured by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his players could normally be expected to get away with their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the fray. In spite of being obliged to function with a war-chest that isn't so much a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the money and expertise of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership equation. As well as investing ten million pounds during the off-season, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts sole use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to discover unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at Tynecastle on Sunday wearing a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be seen celebrating each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the oddsmakers had massively underestimated his side's prospects of defeating the struggling champions, and placed large bets accordingly.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his side's most recent success, their eighth in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for those on the periphery. It might change opinions. It might validate opinions that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the players have given us. In terms of skill, we look in a strong position, and certainly in fitness we look in a good place, so we hope it persists. Naturally, this is not a situation that the team is used to being in." Correct, Derek, it isn't. But the wonderful, analytics-backed truth is that for the initial occasion in many years, the Scottish game might actually have a championship battle that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.