The Reasons Heart of Midlothian's Landmark Title Tilt Shouldn't Come as a Surprise.

JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the only surprising element of Heart of Midlothian's victory over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was just how taken aback observers seemed when reports of the outcome and its consequences for the top of the table emerged. Although this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos leading of the table and eight points ahead of their rivals, was seismic in scale, no one who has been following the fortunes of either squad this campaign will have been in the least shocked by the final score.

Over the last four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to almost a punchline in the process. Several matches into the current campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – could be ready to make their move while the Old Firm influence is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although much of the attention in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the situation at their stadium has meant that Celtic's slightly less terminal decay has been able to fester unnoticed. The reigning champions have so far dropped a considerable number from nine league games this term under their manager. The Celtic manager has developed the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop consulting his Google calendar to find out how many days are left until his contract expires, and woke up this morning to discover the answer is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time here," he told the media following the defeat, after they had questioned his desire for any kind of a title fight. "Therefore the drive is there to attempt to reverse the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the horrific beginning to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be expected to get away with their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the fray. Despite being obliged to function with a war-chest that isn't so much a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have added the money and expertise of a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. In addition to putting in £10m during the off-season, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts sole use of his top secret analytics-based Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to discover hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at their home venue on Sunday wearing a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be seen celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a person who had almost certainly noticed the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his team's prospects of beating the struggling title holders, and filled his boots accordingly.

COACH'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager the head coach after his team's most recent victory, their eighth win in nine league matches. "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 players have given us. In terms of skill, we look in a good place, and definitely physically we look in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Of course, it's not a position that this club is accustomed to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the glorious, 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 the traditional powers can claim.