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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the sole surprising element of Heart of Midlothian's victory over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback people appeared when news of the outcome and its consequences for the summit of the table circulated. Although this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which leaves the Jambos leading of the table and eight points clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of either squad this campaign will have been in the least astonished by the result.

Over the last four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to almost a joke in the process. Nine games into the current campaign it has become apparent that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – could be prepared to strike while the Old Firm influence is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

While a lot of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that the title holders' comparatively less severe decline has been allowed to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have so far lost 10 points from nine league games this season under their manager. The team's boss has acquired the distant look of a man who can't stop checking his schedule to see how many time are remaining until his contract expires, 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 the media following the loss, after they had doubted his appetite for any kind of a title fight. "So the motivation is present to attempt to flip the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the horrific start to the campaign being experienced by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his players could normally be anticipated to get away with their own inability to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the mix. In spite of being forced to function with a budget that is not just a small portion of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have introduced the money and expertise of Tony Bloom to the SPL mix. In addition to putting in ten million pounds during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has provided Hearts sole use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to discover unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at Tynecastle on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be observed celebrating each score with the gusto of a person who had almost certainly realized the oddsmakers had massively misjudged his side's chances of beating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots as a result.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his side's most recent success, their eighth in nine outings. "It might be for others on the periphery. It might change perceptions. It might validate opinions that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the players have provided us. Technically, we appear in a strong position, and certainly physically we look in a excellent shape, 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 wonderful, data-driven truth is that for the initial occasion in many years, Scottish football might actually have a championship battle that somebody other than the traditional powers can win.