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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the sole unexpected element of Hearts' victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which surprised observers seemed when news of the outcome and its consequences for the top of the table emerged. Although this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos top of the league and a significant margin clear of their rivals, was seismic in scale, no one who has been following the progress of either team this season will have been in the least astonished by the final score.

For each of the last 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish football between them, turning fitba to almost a joke in the meantime. Nine games into the current season it has become clear that Hearts – who count celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be prepared to make their move while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although a lot of the attention in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at their stadium has meant that Celtic's slightly less terminal decay has been allowed to fester unnoticed. The reigning champions have already lost 10 points from their opening nine fixtures this season under their manager. The team's boss has developed the distant look of a individual who constantly consulting his schedule to find out how many time are left until his contract expires, and awoke this morning to learn the number is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure here," he told the media following the loss, after they had doubted his desire for anything resembling a title fight. "So the motivation is present to try and reverse the levels that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the dreadful start to the campaign being experienced by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be expected to escape scrutiny for their own failure to start strongly, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has joined the fray. Despite being obliged to function with a budget that isn't so much a small portion of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have introduced the money and expertise of Tony Bloom to the SPL mix. As well as investing £10m during the summer, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts sole use of his top secret data-driven Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to unearth hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a modest car. Spotted at Tynecastle on matchday wearing a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the oddsmakers had massively misjudged his team's prospects of defeating the struggling champions, and placed large bets as a result.

COACH'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said bearded team manager Derek McInnes after his side's most recent success, their eighth in nine outings. "It might be for others on the outside looking in. It might change opinions. It may confirm views that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the lads have provided us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and definitely physically we seem in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Of course, this is not a situation that this club is used to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the wonderful, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might actually have a title race that a team other than the traditional powers can claim.