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HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the only surprising element of Heart of Midlothian's victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was just how surprised people appeared when news of the outcome and its consequences for the summit of the table circulated. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which puts the Jambos leading of the league and a significant margin ahead of their rivals, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been following the fortunes of either squad this campaign will have been even remotely astonished by the result.

Over the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish football between them, reducing the beautiful game to almost a punchline in the process. Nine games into the current season it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – might just be ready to strike while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although a lot of the attention in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at Ibrox has meant that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have so far lost a considerable number from nine fixtures this term under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a man who constantly consulting his Google calendar to see how many days 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 my entire tenure at the club," he told the media following the loss, after they had doubted his appetite for any kind of a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is present to attempt to flip the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, it's still so early."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the horrific beginning to the season being endured by Rangers, Rodgers and his players could typically be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the fray. In spite of being obliged to operate with a war-chest that is not just a small portion of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, the Tynecastle outfit have added the investment and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the SPL equation. As well as investing ten million pounds during the off-season, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to unearth hidden talents 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 mid-range family saloon. Seen at Tynecastle on Sunday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed cheering each goal with the gusto of a person who had almost certainly noticed the oddsmakers had massively misjudged his team's chances of beating the struggling champions, and filled his boots accordingly.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team's latest success, their eighth in nine league matches. "It might be for others on the periphery. It could alter perceptions. It might validate views 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 strong position, and certainly physically we look in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Of course, it's not a position that this club is used to being in." Correct, the manager, it isn't. But the wonderful, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in many years, the Scottish game might actually have a championship battle that somebody besides the traditional powers can win.