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HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the only surprising aspect of Hearts' triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish Premiership was just how taken aback observers 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 Edinburgh side leading of the league and eight points clear of their rivals, was seismic in nature, nobody who has been following the fortunes of either squad this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

Over the past 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish football between them, turning fitba to something of a joke in the meantime. Several matches into the current campaign it has become clear that Hearts – who count Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – might just be ready to make their move while the Glasgow duo influence is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although much of the focus in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at Ibrox has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been able to fester unnoticed. The defending title winners have already dropped 10 points from nine fixtures this term under their manager. The team's boss has acquired the distant look of a individual who constantly consulting his Google calendar to see how many time are left until his deal expires, and woke up this morning to discover the number is 246.

"I've never worked harder in all my time here," he told reporters following the loss, after they had doubted his desire for any kind of a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is present to attempt to flip the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the dreadful start to the campaign being experienced by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his men could normally be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the mix. In spite of being obliged to operate with a war-chest that isn't so much a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the money and expertise of a renowned businessman to the SPL equation. In addition to putting in ten million pounds 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 Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a modest car. Seen at Tynecastle on Sunday wearing a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be seen cheering each goal with the gusto of a man who had almost certainly noticed the bookies had greatly misjudged his team's prospects of defeating the struggling champions, and filled his boots as a result.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer the head coach after his team's most recent success, their eighth in nine outings. "It might be for others on the periphery. It might change opinions. It may confirm opinions that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the lads have provided us. In terms of skill, we appear in a good place, and certainly in fitness we look in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Naturally, it's not a position that this club is accustomed to being in." No, Derek, it is not. But the wonderful, analytics-backed truth is that for the first time in many years, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that a team other than the traditional powers can claim.