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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole surprising aspect of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which taken aback people seemed when reports of the outcome and its impact for the top of the table emerged. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which puts the Jambos leading of the league and eight points ahead of Celtic, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been tracking the progress of both team this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

For each of the past 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish football between them, turning fitba to something of a joke in the process. Several matches into the present season it has become clear that Hearts – who count Stephen Hendry, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – could be prepared to make their move while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While much of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at Ibrox has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decline has been allowed to fester unnoticed. The defending title winners have already dropped 10 points from their opening nine fixtures this term under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has developed the thousand-yard stare of a man who constantly checking his schedule to find out how many days are remaining until his deal ends, and awoke this morning to learn the number is 246.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure at the club," he informed the media following the loss, after they had doubted his desire for anything resembling a title fight. "So the motivation is there to try and reverse the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the horrific start to the campaign being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could normally be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has joined the fray. Despite 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 added the investment and expertise of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership mix. As well as investing £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has provided the club exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at Tynecastle on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a person who had likely noticed the oddsmakers had massively underestimated his side's chances of defeating the struggling title holders, and filled his boots as a result.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer the head coach after his side's latest success, their eighth win in nine outings. "It might be for those on the periphery. It might change opinions. It may confirm views that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the lads have provided us. Technically, we look in a good place, and definitely physically we look in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Naturally, this is not a situation that the team is used to being in." No, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, data-driven reality is that for the initial occasion in ages, Scottish football might actually have a title race that somebody besides Celtic or Rangers can win.