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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the only surprising aspect of Hearts' victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was just how surprised people appeared when news of the outcome and its impact for the top of the table circulated. While this convincing victory at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos top of the table and a significant margin clear of Celtic, was seismic in scale, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of both squad this season will have been in the least shocked by the result.

For each of the past 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to almost a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the present campaign it has become apparent that Hearts – who count Stephen Hendry, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – could be prepared to make their move while the Glasgow duo influence is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although a lot of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at Ibrox has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to worsen below the radar. The defending title winners have so far dropped 10 points from nine league games this season under their manager. The Celtic manager has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop checking his schedule to see how many time are remaining until his contract ends, and woke up this day to discover 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 desire for anything resembling a title fight. "Therefore the drive is there to try and flip the levels that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the horrific start to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his players could normally be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the mix. In spite of being forced to function with a war-chest that is not just a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have added the money and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership mix. In addition to putting in £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has granted the club sole use of his top secret data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to unearth hidden talents from an English lower-league side, 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 matchday sporting a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be seen celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a person who had likely noticed the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his team's prospects of beating the out-of-sorts champions, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer the head coach after his side's most recent success, their eighth in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for those on the periphery. It could alter opinions. It may confirm views that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the players have provided us. In terms of skill, we appear in a good place, and definitely physically we look in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Naturally, it's not a position that this club is accustomed to being in." No, the manager, it isn't. But the wonderful, data-driven truth is that for the first time in ages, Scottish football might genuinely have a title race that somebody besides Celtic or Rangers can win.