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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the sole unexpected aspect of Hearts' victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was just how surprised observers seemed when reports of the result and its impact for the summit of the table emerged. Although this 3-1 win at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos top of the league and eight points ahead of Celtic, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been following the fortunes of either squad this campaign will have been even remotely astonished by the final score.

For each of the past 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish football between them, reducing the beautiful game to something of a joke in the process. Nine games into the present season it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who number Stephen Hendry, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – could be ready to make their move while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

Although much of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at Ibrox has resulted in that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay has been able to worsen unnoticed. The defending title winners have already lost a considerable number from their opening nine league games this term under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has developed the distant look of a man who constantly consulting his schedule to see how many time are remaining until his contract expires, and woke up this morning to discover the answer is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure at the club," he informed reporters following the loss, after they had questioned his desire for anything resembling a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is there to try and flip the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the horrific start to the season being experienced by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his men could typically be expected to get away with their own inability to roar out of the traps, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the mix. In spite of being forced to operate with a war-chest that isn't so much a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the investment and expertise of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership mix. As well as investing £10m during the summer, the Brighton owner has granted the club exclusive use of his top secret data-driven proprietary scouting player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed 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 combined cost of a modest car. Spotted at their home venue on Sunday wearing a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be seen celebrating each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely noticed the bookies had massively underestimated his side's prospects of defeating the struggling champions, and filled his boots as a result.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team's most recent success, their eighth win in nine outings. "It might be for others on the periphery. It could alter opinions. It may confirm 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 look in a strong position, and certainly in fitness we seem in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Of course, it's not a position that the team is used to being in." Correct, the manager, it isn't. But the wonderful, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might actually have a championship battle that a team besides the traditional powers can claim.