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JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the only unexpected aspect of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback observers seemed when reports of the result and its consequences for the summit of the standings emerged. Although this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which leaves the Edinburgh side top of the league and a significant margin ahead of Celtic, was seismic in scale, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of both team this season will have been in the least shocked by the result.

For each of the past four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish football between them, turning the beautiful game to something of a joke in the process. Several matches into the present season it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be prepared to strike while the Glasgow duo iron is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

Although much of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at Ibrox has meant that the title holders' slightly less terminal decline has been able to worsen below the radar. The reigning champions have so far lost 10 points from nine fixtures this term under their manager. The team's boss has developed the distant look of a man who constantly checking his Google calendar to find out how many time are remaining until his deal expires, and woke up this morning to learn the answer is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in all my time at the club," he informed reporters following the defeat, after they had doubted his appetite for any kind of a championship battle. "So the motivation is there to attempt to reverse the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the horrific beginning to the campaign being experienced by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his players could normally be anticipated to get away with their own inability to start strongly, but this year an capital city challenger has joined the mix. Despite being obliged to function with a war-chest that is not just a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have introduced the investment and expertise of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership equation. In addition to putting in £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has provided the club sole use of his highly confidential data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to discover unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at Tynecastle on matchday wearing a club colours, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be seen cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a person who had likely noticed the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his side's prospects of defeating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots as a result.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager the head coach after his side's most recent victory, their eighth in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for those on the outside looking in. It could alter perceptions. It may confirm views that there's a fine line. 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 strong position, and definitely physically we look in a good place, so we hope it persists. Of course, this is not a situation that this club is accustomed to being in." No, the manager, it isn't. But the glorious, data-driven truth is that for the initial occasion in ages, Scottish football might genuinely have a championship battle that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.