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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole surprising aspect of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback observers seemed when reports of the outcome and its consequences for the top of the standings emerged. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos leading of the league and eight points clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of either squad this season will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

For each of the last four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish football between them, reducing fitba to something of a joke in the meantime. Nine games into the current campaign it has become apparent that Hearts – who number Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – could be ready to make their move while the Old Firm influence is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S SLUMP

While much of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at Ibrox has meant that Celtic's slightly less terminal decay has been able to fester unnoticed. The defending title winners have already dropped 10 points from their opening nine fixtures this term under their manager. The team's boss has acquired the distant look of a man who can't stop checking his Google calendar to see how many days are left until his deal expires, and woke up this day 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 appetite for anything resembling a championship battle. "So the motivation is present to attempt to reverse the levels that we're at. It's absolutely fine, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the dreadful beginning to the season being endured by Rangers, Rodgers and his players could typically be expected to escape scrutiny for their own failure to start strongly, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the fray. Despite being forced to function with a budget that isn't so much a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have added the investment and expertise of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership equation. As well as investing ten million pounds during the summer, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts exclusive use of his top secret data-driven Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to unearth unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a modest car. Seen at their home venue on matchday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each score with the gusto of a man who had likely noticed the oddsmakers had massively underestimated his team's prospects of beating the out-of-sorts title holders, and placed large bets as a result.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his team's latest success, their eighth in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for those on the periphery. It could alter perceptions. It may confirm views that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the players have given us. In terms of skill, we appear in a good place, and definitely in fitness we seem in a good place, so long may that continue. Of course, it's not a position that the team is used to being in." Correct, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed reality is that for the initial occasion in ages, the Scottish game might genuinely have a championship battle that somebody besides Celtic or Rangers can win.