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HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the sole surprising aspect of Hearts' triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was just how surprised observers seemed when news of the outcome and its impact for the top of the table emerged. While this 3-1 win at their home ground, which puts the Jambos leading of the table and eight points ahead of their rivals, was seismic in nature, nobody who has been tracking the progress of both team this season will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

For each of the past 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish football between them, turning fitba to something of a punchline in the meantime. Nine games into the current season it has become clear that Hearts – who number Stephen Hendry, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their famous supporters – might just be prepared to strike while the Old Firm influence is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

Although much of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being endured by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the situation at Ibrox has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to worsen below the radar. The reigning champions have so far lost a considerable number from nine fixtures this season under their manager. The team's boss has acquired the distant look of a individual who can't stop consulting his schedule to see how many days are remaining until his contract expires, and woke up this morning to learn the number is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time at the club," he told the media following the defeat, after they had questioned his appetite for anything resembling a championship battle. "So the motivation is present to attempt to reverse the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the dreadful start to the campaign being endured by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his men could typically be expected to get away with their own failure to roar out of the traps, but this year an capital city challenger has joined the mix. In spite of being obliged to function with a war-chest that isn't so much a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have introduced the investment and expertise of Tony Bloom to the SPL mix. As well as investing ten million pounds during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has provided Hearts sole use of his top secret data-driven proprietary scouting player identification system.

In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to unearth unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at Tynecastle on matchday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be seen celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly noticed the oddsmakers had greatly underestimated his team's prospects of defeating the struggling title holders, and placed large bets as a result.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his side's most recent success, their eighth in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for those on the periphery. It could alter perceptions. It might validate opinions that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the players have given us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and certainly in fitness we look in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Of course, it's not a position that this club is used to being in." No, the manager, it isn't. But the wonderful, analytics-backed truth is that for the initial occasion in many years, Scottish football might actually have a championship battle that a team other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.