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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the only surprising element of Heart of Midlothian's victory over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was just how surprised people appeared when news of the result and its impact for the summit of the table circulated. While this 3-1 win at their home ground, which leaves the Edinburgh side leading of the league and a significant margin ahead of their rivals, was seismic in scale, nobody who has been following the progress of both squad this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

Over the last 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have divided 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 apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number Stephen Hendry, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be prepared to make their move while the Old Firm iron is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

Although much of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that Celtic's slightly less terminal decline has been able to worsen below the radar. The defending title winners have already dropped 10 points from their opening nine league games this season under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has developed the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop checking his schedule to see how many days are left until his contract expires, and awoke this morning to discover the number is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure at the club," he told reporters following the defeat, after they had doubted his desire for any kind of a title fight. "Therefore the drive is present to try and flip the levels that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the dreadful beginning to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be expected to escape scrutiny for their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the mix. Despite being obliged to operate with a war-chest that isn't so much a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the investment and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership equation. As well as putting in £10m during the summer, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to unearth hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at their home venue on Sunday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be seen cheering each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the bookies had greatly misjudged his side's chances of beating the struggling title holders, and placed large bets as a result.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team's latest victory, their eighth in nine league matches. "It might be for others on the periphery. It might change perceptions. It may confirm opinions that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the lads have provided us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and definitely in fitness we look in a good place, so we hope it persists. Naturally, this is not a situation that the team is used to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the glorious, analytics-backed truth is that for the initial occasion in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a championship battle that a team other than the traditional powers can claim.