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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole surprising aspect of Heart of Midlothian's victory over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was just how taken aback observers appeared when news of the outcome and its impact for the summit of the standings emerged. While this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos leading of the table and a significant margin clear of their rivals, was seismic in nature, no one who has been tracking the progress of both squad this season will have been even remotely astonished 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 almost a punchline in the process. Several matches into the present campaign it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – could be prepared to strike while the Old Firm influence is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S SLUMP

Although a lot of the focus in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at Ibrox has meant that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been able to fester below the radar. The defending title winners have already lost 10 points from their opening nine league games this term under their manager. The Celtic manager has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a individual who constantly consulting his Google calendar to see how many time are remaining until his deal expires, and awoke this morning to learn the answer is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in all my time here," he told reporters following the defeat, after they had questioned his desire for any kind of a championship battle. "So the motivation is present to try and reverse the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the horrific beginning to the campaign being endured by Rangers, Rodgers and his players could normally be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has joined the fray. Despite being obliged to operate with a war-chest that is not just a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the money and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the SPL equation. As well as putting in ten million pounds during the off-season, the Brighton owner has granted the club sole use of his highly confidential analytics-based Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to unearth hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at their home venue on matchday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be seen celebrating each goal with the gusto of a man who had almost certainly noticed the bookies had massively misjudged his side's chances of beating the struggling champions, and filled his boots as a result.

COACH'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his side's most recent victory, their eighth in nine outings. "It might be for those on the outside looking in. It could alter perceptions. It may confirm opinions that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the lads have given us. Technically, we appear in a strong position, and definitely physically we seem in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, this is not a situation that the team is accustomed to being in." Correct, Derek, it isn't. But the wonderful, data-driven truth is that for the initial occasion in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that a team besides the traditional powers can claim.