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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the only surprising aspect of Heart of Midlothian's victory over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which taken aback people seemed when news of the outcome and its consequences for the summit of the table circulated. Although this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which leaves the Edinburgh side top of the table and eight points ahead of Celtic, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been following the fortunes of either team this campaign will have been even remotely astonished by the result.

Over the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish league between them, turning the beautiful game to something of a joke in the process. Nine games into the present campaign it has become clear that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – could be ready to strike while the Glasgow duo influence is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although a lot of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being suffered by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at their stadium has meant that Celtic's slightly less terminal decay has been able to fester unnoticed. The defending title winners have so far dropped 10 points from their opening nine league games this season under their manager. The team's boss has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a man who constantly checking his schedule to find out how many days are remaining until his deal expires, and woke up this day to discover the answer is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time at the club," he informed reporters following the loss, after they had doubted his appetite for anything resembling a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is there to try and reverse the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the horrific beginning to the season being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his men could typically be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to start strongly, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the mix. Despite being obliged to function with a budget that isn't so much a small portion of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the investment and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. In addition to investing £10m during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has granted Hearts sole use of his top secret data-driven proprietary scouting player identification system.

In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to unearth hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a modest car. Seen at their home venue on matchday wearing a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be seen cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a person who had almost certainly realized the bookies had massively underestimated his side's chances of beating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots as a result.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a statement win," said bearded team manager the head coach after his side's latest victory, their eighth win in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for those on the outside looking in. It could alter opinions. It may confirm opinions that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the lads have given us. Technically, we appear in a good place, and certainly in fitness we look in a good place, so we hope it persists. Of course, it's not a position that the team is accustomed to being in." No, Derek, it is not. But the glorious, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in ages, the Scottish game might genuinely have a championship battle that a team besides the traditional powers can win.