🔗 Share this article

JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole unexpected element of Hearts' triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which surprised observers appeared when reports of the result and its impact for the top of the standings circulated. Although this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which leaves the Jambos leading of the table and a significant margin ahead of their rivals, was seismic in nature, nobody who has been tracking the progress of either squad this season will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

For each of the last 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish football between them, reducing the beautiful game to almost a punchline in the meantime. Nine games into the current campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – might just be ready to make their move while the Old Firm influence is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

Although much of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at Ibrox has meant that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to fester unnoticed. The defending title winners have already dropped 10 points from nine fixtures this season under their manager. The team's boss has developed the distant look of a individual who constantly consulting his schedule to see how many time are left until his deal ends, and woke up this morning to learn the answer is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time at the club," he informed reporters following the loss, after they had questioned his appetite for any kind of a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is there to try and flip the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the dreadful beginning to the campaign being experienced by Rangers, Rodgers and his men could typically be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to start strongly, but this year an capital city challenger has entered the fray. Despite being forced to operate with a war-chest that is not just a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have added the money and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the SPL mix. As well as putting in ten million pounds during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has granted Hearts exclusive use of his highly confidential data-driven Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to discover hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at their home venue on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be seen cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly realized the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his side's chances of defeating the struggling title holders, and filled his boots as a result.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a statement win," said bearded team manager the head coach after his side's most recent victory, their eighth in nine league matches. "It might be for those on the periphery. It could alter perceptions. It might validate views that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the lads have provided us. In terms of skill, we appear in a strong position, and certainly physically we look in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Naturally, it's not a position that the team is used to being in." No, the manager, it isn't. But the wonderful, data-driven reality is that for the first time in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a championship battle that a team besides Celtic or Rangers can claim.