🔗 Share this article

JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole unexpected element of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which surprised observers seemed when reports of the result and its consequences for the summit of the standings emerged. While this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos top of the table and a significant margin ahead of their rivals, was seismic in scale, nobody who has been tracking the progress of either squad this season will have been even remotely astonished by the result.

For each of the last 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish league between them, turning the beautiful game to almost a joke in the meantime. Nine games into the present season it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be ready to strike while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

Although a lot of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being suffered by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at Ibrox has meant that Celtic's comparatively less severe decline has been able to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have so far dropped a considerable number from their opening nine fixtures this season under their manager. The team's boss has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop consulting his schedule to see how many days are remaining until his contract ends, and woke up this day to learn the answer is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in all my time at the club," he told reporters following the loss, after they had doubted his appetite for any kind of a title fight. "Therefore the drive is there to try and reverse the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the horrific beginning to the campaign being endured by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his players could normally be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the fray. Despite being obliged to function with a budget 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 a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. As well as putting in ten million pounds during the off-season, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to unearth hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at their home venue on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be seen celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly realized the bookies had massively underestimated his team's prospects of defeating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots as a result.

COACH'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his side's latest success, 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 tightrope. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the lads have provided us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and certainly in fitness we seem in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Naturally, this is not a situation that this club is accustomed to being in." Correct, the manager, it is not. But the wonderful, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in ages, Scottish football might actually have a title race that somebody besides Celtic or Rangers can claim.