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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the only surprising aspect of Hearts' victory over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which taken aback observers seemed when reports of the result and its impact for the top of the table emerged. While this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which leaves the Jambos leading of the league and a significant margin ahead of their rivals, was earth-shattering in nature, no one who has been tracking the progress of both squad this season will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

For each of the past 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. Several matches into the current season it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who count Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – could be ready to strike while the Old Firm influence is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

Although much of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the situation at their stadium has meant that the title holders' slightly less terminal decay has been able to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have already lost a considerable number from nine fixtures this term under their manager. The team's boss has acquired the distant look of a individual who constantly checking his Google calendar to see how many days are left until his contract expires, and woke up this morning to discover the answer is 246.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure at the club," he told reporters following the defeat, after they had questioned his appetite for any kind of a championship battle. "So the motivation is there to attempt to reverse the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the horrific beginning to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be anticipated to get away with their own failure to roar out of the traps, but this year an capital city challenger has joined the mix. In spite of being obliged to function with a budget that isn't so much a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have introduced the money and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership mix. In addition to investing ten million pounds during the off-season, the Brighton owner has granted the club sole use of his top secret data-driven proprietary scouting player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to unearth unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a modest car. Spotted at their home venue on matchday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be seen cheering each score with the gusto of a man who had almost certainly noticed the bookies had massively misjudged his side's prospects of defeating the struggling champions, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his side's latest success, their eighth in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It might change opinions. It may confirm opinions that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the players have given us. Technically, we look in a good place, and certainly in fitness we look in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Of course, it's not a position that the team is accustomed to being in." No, Derek, it is not. But the wonderful, data-driven truth is that for the initial occasion in ages, Scottish football might genuinely have a title race that a team other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.