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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the only surprising aspect of Hearts' victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish Premiership was just how taken aback observers seemed when news of the result and its consequences for the summit of the table circulated. Although this 3-1 win at their home ground, which leaves the Edinburgh side top of the league and eight points ahead of their rivals, was seismic in nature, nobody who has been following the progress of both team 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 league between them, turning fitba to almost a joke in the meantime. Several matches into the current campaign it has become clear that Hearts – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be ready to make their move while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although a lot of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at Ibrox has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decline has been able to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have so far lost 10 points from nine league games this term under their manager. The team's boss has developed the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop checking his schedule to see how many days are left until his contract ends, and awoke this day to discover the answer is 246.

"I've never worked harder in all my time here," he informed reporters following the loss, after they had questioned his appetite for anything resembling a title fight. "So the motivation is present to try and flip the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the dreadful start to the season being endured by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his men could typically be anticipated to get away with their own failure to start strongly, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the fray. Despite being obliged to function with a war-chest that isn't so much a small portion of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the money and expertise of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership mix. In addition to putting in ten million pounds during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has provided the club exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to unearth unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at Tynecastle on matchday wearing a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed cheering each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely noticed the bookies had greatly misjudged his team's prospects of beating the struggling champions, and filled his boots as a result.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired team manager the head coach after his side's latest success, their eighth in nine outings. "It might be for others on the outside looking in. It could alter opinions. It might validate views that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the lads have given us. In terms of skill, we look in a strong position, and certainly in fitness we look in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, it's not a position that this club is used to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the glorious, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in many years, the Scottish game might genuinely have a title race that somebody other than the traditional powers can win.