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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the sole surprising aspect of Hearts' triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was just how surprised people appeared when reports of the outcome and its consequences for the summit of the standings circulated. Although this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos top of the table and eight points clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of either squad this campaign will have been even remotely astonished by the final score.

For each of the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish league between them, reducing fitba to almost a punchline in the process. Nine games into the current season it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – could be prepared to strike while the Glasgow duo influence is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While a lot of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that the title holders' comparatively less severe decline has been able to worsen below the radar. The reigning champions have so far dropped 10 points from their opening nine fixtures this term under their manager. The team's boss has developed the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop consulting his Google calendar to find out how many time are remaining until his contract ends, and woke up this morning to discover the answer is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure at the club," he informed the media following the defeat, after they had questioned his desire for any kind of a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is there to attempt to reverse 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, the Celtic boss and his men could normally be expected to get away with their own failure to roar out of the traps, but this year an capital city challenger has entered the mix. Despite being forced to function with a war-chest that is not just a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the money and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. As well as investing £10m during the off-season, the Brighton owner has granted the club exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to unearth hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at Tynecastle on Sunday wearing a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be seen cheering each goal with the gusto of a person who had almost certainly realized the oddsmakers had greatly underestimated his side's chances of beating the struggling title holders, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his team's most recent success, their eighth win in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It could alter opinions. It may confirm opinions that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the players have provided us. In terms of skill, we appear in a good place, and certainly physically we seem in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, this is not a situation that this club is accustomed to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the glorious, data-driven truth is that for the first time in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a championship battle that a team other than the traditional powers can claim.