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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the sole unexpected aspect of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was just how surprised observers seemed when news of the outcome and its impact for the top of the standings circulated. While this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos top of the league and a significant margin clear of Celtic, was seismic in nature, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of both squad this season will have been in the least shocked by the final score.

Over the last 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, turning the beautiful game to almost a punchline in the process. Nine games into the present campaign it has become clear that Hearts – who number Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their famous supporters – might just be ready to make their move while the Old Firm influence is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While much of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being suffered by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the situation at Ibrox has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay has been able to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have so far dropped 10 points from nine fixtures this term under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a individual who can't stop checking his Google calendar to find out how many time are remaining until his deal ends, and awoke this day to learn the number is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure at the club," he told the media following the defeat, after they had questioned his desire for any kind of a title fight. "Therefore the drive is present to attempt to reverse the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the dreadful beginning to the campaign being experienced by Rangers, Rodgers and his players could typically be anticipated to get away with their own inability to start strongly, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has joined the fray. Despite being forced to function with a budget that is not just a small portion of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, the Tynecastle outfit have added the investment and knowledge 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 granted the club exclusive use of his top secret data-driven 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 Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a modest car. Seen at Tynecastle on Sunday wearing a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the oddsmakers had massively underestimated his side's prospects of defeating the out-of-sorts title holders, and filled his boots as a result.

COACH'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team's most recent success, their eighth win in nine league matches. "It might be for others on the periphery. It might change perceptions. It might validate views that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the lads have given us. Technically, we appear in a good place, and certainly in fitness we seem in a good place, so we hope it persists. Naturally, this is not a situation that the team is accustomed 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 championship battle that a team besides Celtic or Rangers can claim.