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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the only surprising element of Heart of Midlothian's victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish Premiership was just how taken aback observers appeared when news of the outcome and its impact for the summit of the table emerged. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which puts the Jambos leading of the league and a significant margin clear of Celtic, was seismic in nature, no one who has been following the progress of either team this season will have been even remotely astonished by the final score.

For each of the last four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish football between them, reducing fitba to something of a punchline in the meantime. Nine games into the present campaign it has become clear that Hearts – who number Stephen Hendry, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – might just be prepared to strike while the Glasgow duo iron is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S SLUMP

While much of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being suffered by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the situation at Ibrox has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have so far dropped a considerable number from their opening nine league games this term under their manager. The team's boss has developed the distant look of a individual who constantly checking his Google calendar to see how many days are remaining until his deal expires, and woke up this morning to discover the number is 246.

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

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the dreadful start to the season being experienced by Rangers, Rodgers and his players could normally be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own failure to roar out of the traps, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the fray. Despite being obliged to operate with a budget that isn't so much a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have introduced the money and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership equation. As well as investing ten million pounds during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has provided the club sole use of his top secret analytics-based Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to discover hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at their home venue on matchday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be seen celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the bookies had massively underestimated his team's prospects of defeating the out-of-sorts champions, and placed large bets as a result.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired team manager the head coach after his side's most recent success, their eighth win in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It could alter perceptions. It might validate views that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the lads have given us. In terms of skill, we look in a good place, and certainly physically we seem in a good place, so long may that continue. Of course, this is not a situation that this club is used to being in." Correct, Derek, 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 somebody besides Celtic or Rangers can claim.