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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the only unexpected element of Hearts' triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was just how taken aback people appeared when news of the outcome and its consequences for the top of the standings circulated. Although this 3-1 win at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos top of the table and eight points clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of both squad this season will have been in the least astonished by the result.

Over the past 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish football between them, turning fitba to almost a punchline in the process. Nine games into the present season it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – could be prepared to strike while the Glasgow duo influence is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

While a lot of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being suffered by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been able to worsen below the radar. The defending title winners have already dropped 10 points from nine league games this term under their manager. The Celtic manager has acquired the distant look of a man who can't stop checking his schedule to see how many days are remaining until his deal ends, and awoke this morning to discover the number is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure here," he told the media following the defeat, after they had doubted his desire for anything resembling a title fight. "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

Considering the horrific beginning to the season being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the mix. In spite of being obliged to operate with a budget that isn't so much a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have added the investment and expertise of Tony Bloom to the SPL equation. In addition to putting in £10m during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has granted the club exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a modest car. Seen at Tynecastle on Sunday wearing a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be seen cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the oddsmakers had greatly underestimated his side's prospects of defeating the struggling champions, and filled his boots accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a statement win," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his side's latest success, their eighth win in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the outside looking in. It could alter opinions. It may confirm opinions that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have given us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and definitely in fitness we seem in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Naturally, this is not a situation that the team is used to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the wonderful, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in many years, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that a team other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.