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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the sole unexpected element of Hearts' triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback observers appeared when news of the result and its impact for the summit of the standings circulated. While this convincing victory at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos leading of the table and a significant margin clear of their rivals, was seismic in scale, nobody who has been following the progress of both squad this campaign will have been in the least astonished by the result.

For each of the past 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm 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 season it has become clear that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – could be ready to make their move while the Glasgow duo iron is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While much 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 allowed to worsen unnoticed. The defending title winners have already lost a considerable number from nine fixtures this season under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has acquired the distant look of a individual who can't stop consulting his Google calendar to see how many time are left until his contract ends, and awoke this day to discover the number is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure at the club," he informed the media following the defeat, after they had doubted his appetite for any kind of a title fight. "Therefore the drive is present to try and flip the standards 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 the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his players could typically be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but this year an capital city challenger has entered the fray. Despite 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 money and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership mix. In addition to investing £10m during the summer, the Brighton owner has provided the club sole use of his highly confidential analytics-based Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to discover hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a modest car. Seen at Tynecastle on Sunday wearing a club colours, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be observed celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely noticed the bookies had greatly misjudged his side's chances of defeating the out-of-sorts title holders, and placed large bets accordingly.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a statement win," said bearded team manager the head coach after his side's most recent success, their eighth in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It might change opinions. It might validate views that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the players have given us. In terms of skill, we appear in a good place, and certainly physically we look in a good place, so we hope it persists. Naturally, it's not a position that the team is used to being in." Correct, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, data-driven truth is that for the initial occasion in many years, the Scottish game might genuinely have a championship battle that a team besides Celtic or Rangers can claim.