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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the only surprising aspect of Hearts' victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback observers appeared when reports of the outcome and its impact for the top of the table circulated. Although this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos top of the table and eight points ahead of their rivals, was seismic in nature, no one who has been tracking the progress of either team this season will have been even remotely astonished by the final score.

Over the past 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to almost a joke in the process. Nine games into the current season it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who count Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be ready to make their move while the Glasgow duo influence is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While a lot 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 circumstances at Ibrox has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decline has been able to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have so far lost a considerable number from nine league games this season under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a individual who constantly checking his schedule to find out how many days are remaining until his contract expires, and woke up this day to discover the answer is 246.

"I've never worked harder in all my time at the club," he informed reporters 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. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the horrific beginning to the campaign being endured by Rangers, Rodgers and his men could typically be anticipated to get away with their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has joined the mix. In spite of being obliged to operate with a war-chest 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 a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. As well as putting in £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has provided the club exclusive use of his highly confidential data-driven Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to unearth unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a modest car. Seen at Tynecastle on matchday wearing a club colours, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be seen cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly noticed the bookies had greatly underestimated his side's chances of defeating the struggling champions, and placed large bets accordingly.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager the head coach after his side's most recent victory, their eighth in nine outings. "It might be for those on the outside looking in. It might change opinions. It might validate opinions that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the players have provided us. In terms of skill, we appear in a strong position, and certainly physically we seem in a good place, so we hope it persists. Of course, it's not a position that the team is accustomed to being in." No, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed truth is that for the initial occasion in many years, the Scottish game might genuinely have a championship battle that somebody besides the traditional powers can win.