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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the sole unexpected element of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was just how taken aback people seemed when news of the result and its impact for the top of the standings circulated. While this 3-1 win at their home ground, which puts the Edinburgh side leading of the table and a significant margin ahead of their rivals, was earth-shattering in nature, no one who has been tracking the fortunes of both squad this campaign will have been in the least shocked by the final score.

Over the last four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish football between them, turning the beautiful game to something of a joke in the meantime. Nine games into the current season it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their famous supporters – might just be prepared to make their move while the Glasgow duo iron is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

While much of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at Ibrox has resulted in that Celtic's slightly less terminal decline has been able to fester below the radar. The defending title winners have so far dropped a considerable number from nine fixtures this season under their manager. The team's boss has acquired the distant look of a man who constantly consulting his Google calendar to see how many time are left until his contract ends, and woke up this morning to learn the answer is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time at the club," he told the media following the loss, after they had doubted his desire for any kind of 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."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the horrific beginning to the season being experienced by Rangers, Rodgers and his men could typically be expected to get away with their own inability to roar out of the traps, but this year an capital city challenger has joined the fray. Despite being obliged to function with a war-chest that is not just a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have introduced the investment and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership equation. As well as putting in £10m during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has granted the club exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to discover unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at their home venue on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be observed cheering each goal with the gusto of a man who had almost certainly realized the bookies had greatly misjudged his side's prospects of beating the struggling champions, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his team's most recent victory, their eighth win in nine outings. "It might be for those on the periphery. It could alter perceptions. It may confirm views that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the players have given us. In terms of skill, we appear in a strong position, and definitely in fitness we seem in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Naturally, this is not a situation that this club is accustomed to being in." No, the manager, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed truth is that for the initial occasion in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a championship battle that somebody other than the traditional powers can claim.