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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the only unexpected element of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was just how taken aback observers seemed when news of the outcome and its consequences for the top of the standings emerged. Although this 3-1 win at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos top of the league and eight points clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been following the progress of both squad this campaign will have been even remotely astonished by the result.

For each of the last 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish football between them, turning fitba to almost a joke in the meantime. Several matches into the present season it has become apparent that Hearts – who count Stephen Hendry, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – could be prepared to strike while the Old Firm influence is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S SLUMP

Although much of the attention in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay has been able to worsen unnoticed. The defending title winners 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 man who can't stop consulting his Google calendar to see how many days are remaining until his contract ends, and awoke this morning to learn the answer is 246.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure here," he informed the media following the loss, after they had questioned his appetite for anything resembling a title fight. "Therefore the drive is present to try and flip the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the horrific beginning to the campaign being experienced by Rangers, Rodgers and his men could typically be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the fray. In spite of being forced to operate with a war-chest that is not just a small portion of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the investment and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership equation. In addition to putting in £10m during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has granted 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 allowed them to discover hidden talents from Walsall, 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 Tynecastle on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be seen cheering each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely noticed the oddsmakers had greatly underestimated his team's prospects of defeating the struggling champions, and filled his boots accordingly.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his side's most recent victory, their eighth win in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It might change opinions. It might validate opinions that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the lads have provided us. In terms of skill, we look in a good place, and certainly in fitness we look in a good place, so long may that continue. Of course, it's not a position that the team is used to being in." No, the manager, it isn't. But the wonderful, data-driven truth is that for the initial occasion in many years, the Scottish game might genuinely have a title race that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can win.