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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the only surprising aspect of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which surprised people seemed when news of the result and its consequences for the top of the standings emerged. Although this 3-1 win at their home ground, which leaves the Edinburgh side top of the table and a significant margin clear of their rivals, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been tracking the progress of either squad this campaign will have been even remotely astonished by the final score.

Over the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish football between them, turning the beautiful game to almost a joke in the process. Nine games into the present campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – might just be ready to strike while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

Although a lot of the attention in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being suffered by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decline has been allowed to fester unnoticed. The defending title winners have so far dropped 10 points from their opening nine fixtures this season under their manager. The team's boss has developed the thousand-yard stare of a individual who constantly checking his schedule to see how many time are remaining 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 reporters following the defeat, after they had doubted his appetite for anything resembling a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is there to attempt to reverse the levels that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the dreadful beginning to the campaign being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss 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 entered the mix. In spite of being forced to operate with a budget that is not just a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have added the money and expertise of a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. As well as investing £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has granted the club exclusive use of his top secret data-driven Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to unearth hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at Tynecastle on Sunday wearing a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed cheering each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly noticed the bookies had greatly misjudged his side's prospects of defeating the struggling title holders, and filled his boots accordingly.

COACH'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer the head coach after his team's most recent victory, their eighth in nine outings. "It might be for those on the outside looking in. It could alter opinions. It may confirm opinions that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have provided us. In terms of skill, we look in a strong position, and certainly physically we seem in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, it's not a position that the team is used to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the glorious, data-driven truth is that for the initial occasion in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a championship battle that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can win.