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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole unexpected element of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was just how surprised people appeared when news of the outcome and its impact for the top of the standings circulated. Although this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Edinburgh side leading of the table and eight points clear of their rivals, was seismic in nature, no one who has been tracking the fortunes of both team this campaign will have been in the least astonished by the result.

Over the last 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, reducing the beautiful game to something of a joke in the process. Several matches into the present campaign it has become clear that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be prepared to strike while the Old Firm iron is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

Although much of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been able to worsen below the radar. The defending title winners have already dropped a considerable number from nine league games this term under their manager. The team's boss has developed the distant look of a man who constantly checking his Google calendar to find out how many time are left until his contract ends, and woke up this morning to discover the number is 246.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure at the club," he informed reporters following the defeat, after they had questioned his appetite for anything resembling a championship battle. "So the motivation is present to attempt to flip the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the dreadful beginning to the campaign being endured by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his men could typically be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to start strongly, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the mix. In spite of being forced to operate with a war-chest that isn't so much a small portion of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have introduced the money and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership equation. As well as putting in £10m during the off-season, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts sole use of his highly confidential data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to unearth hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at Tynecastle on matchday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be observed celebrating each score with the gusto of a man who had likely realized the oddsmakers had massively underestimated his side's prospects of defeating the struggling champions, and filled his boots accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said bearded team manager the head coach after his side's latest success, their eighth in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It might change opinions. It may confirm opinions that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have given us. Technically, we look in a good place, 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 wonderful, analytics-backed truth is that for the first time in ages, the Scottish game might genuinely have a championship battle that a team besides Celtic or Rangers can win.