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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the sole surprising element of Heart of Midlothian's victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback people appeared when news of the outcome and its consequences for the top of the table circulated. Although this 3-1 win at their home ground, which puts the Edinburgh side top of the table and eight points clear of their rivals, was earth-shattering in scale, no one who has been following the progress of either squad this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

For each of the last four decades, 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 joke in the process. Several matches into the current season it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – could be ready to strike while the Old Firm influence is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

Although a lot of the attention in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at Ibrox has meant that Celtic's slightly less terminal decline has been allowed to worsen unnoticed. The reigning champions have already dropped 10 points from their opening nine fixtures this term under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has developed the thousand-yard stare of a man who constantly consulting his Google calendar to see how many time are remaining until his contract ends, and awoke this morning to discover the number is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure here," he told the media following the defeat, after they had doubted his appetite for any kind of a title fight. "So the motivation is there to try and reverse the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the dreadful beginning to the campaign being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his men could typically be anticipated to get away with their own inability to start strongly, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the fray. Despite being forced to function with a budget that is not just a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the money and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership equation. As well as investing ten million pounds during the off-season, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts sole use of his highly confidential data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

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 Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at Tynecastle on matchday sporting a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be seen celebrating each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly realized the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his side's prospects of beating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots accordingly.

COACH'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said bearded team manager Derek McInnes after his team's latest victory, their eighth win in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It might change perceptions. It might validate views that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have provided us. In terms of skill, we look in a good place, and definitely physically 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." Correct, Derek, it isn't. But the wonderful, data-driven truth is that for the first time in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.