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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the only unexpected aspect of Heart of Midlothian's victory over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was just how taken aback observers appeared when reports of the result and its consequences for the top of the table emerged. While this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which leaves the Jambos leading of the table and eight points ahead of Celtic, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of either squad this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

For each of the last 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish league between them, reducing fitba to something of a joke in the meantime. Several matches into the current campaign it has become clear that Hearts – who count celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their famous supporters – might just be prepared to strike while the Old Firm influence is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S SLUMP

While a lot of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being endured by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that the title holders' slightly less terminal decay has been able to worsen unnoticed. The reigning champions have already dropped 10 points from nine fixtures this term under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has developed the distant look of a man who can't stop checking his schedule to see how many time are left until his contract expires, and woke up this morning to learn the number 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 questioned 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."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the horrific start to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his men could normally be anticipated to get away with their own failure to start strongly, but this year an capital city challenger has joined the fray. Despite being obliged to operate with a war-chest that is not just a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have introduced the money and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership equation. In addition to investing ten million pounds during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has granted Hearts exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to unearth unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at their home venue on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be observed cheering each score with the gusto of a person who had almost certainly noticed the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his team's chances of defeating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots as a result.

COACH'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team'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 views that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the lads have provided us. In terms of skill, we appear in a strong position, and certainly physically we look 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, the manager, it isn't. But the wonderful, data-driven reality is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might genuinely have a championship battle that somebody besides Celtic or Rangers can claim.