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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole surprising element of Hearts' triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback observers appeared when reports of the result and its impact for the top of the standings circulated. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos leading of the league and eight points clear of their rivals, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been tracking the progress of either team this season will have been in the least shocked by the result.

Over the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish league between them, reducing the beautiful game to something of a punchline in the process. Nine games into the present campaign it has become clear that Hearts – who count Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – could be ready to strike while the Glasgow duo iron is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S SLUMP

While a lot of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the situation at Ibrox has meant that Celtic's slightly less terminal decay has been able to fester below the radar. The defending title winners have so far dropped a considerable number from their opening nine league games this season under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has developed the thousand-yard stare of a man who constantly consulting his Google calendar to find out how many time are left until his deal expires, and woke up this morning to discover the number is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time at the club," he told reporters following the defeat, after they had doubted his desire for anything resembling a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is present to attempt to reverse the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the dreadful start to the season being experienced by Rangers, Rodgers and his players could typically be expected to escape scrutiny for their own failure to roar out of the traps, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the mix. In spite of being forced to function with a budget that isn't so much a small portion of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have introduced the investment and expertise of a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. In addition to investing £10m during the off-season, the Brighton owner has provided the club sole use of his highly confidential data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to discover unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at their home venue on matchday wearing a club colours, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly realized the oddsmakers had massively underestimated his side's prospects of defeating the struggling champions, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team's latest victory, their eighth win in nine league matches. "It might be for others on the outside looking in. It could alter opinions. It may confirm opinions that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the lads have given us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and definitely physically we look in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, it's not a position that this club is used to being in." No, the manager, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed reality is that for the initial occasion in ages, Scottish football might actually have a championship battle that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can win.