The Reasons Heart of Midlothian's Landmark Title Tilt Isn't as a Shock.

JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the sole unexpected aspect of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which surprised people seemed when news of the outcome and its consequences for the summit of the standings emerged. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which leaves the Edinburgh side leading of the table and eight points clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in scale, no one who has been tracking the fortunes of both squad this season will have been even remotely astonished by the result.

For each of the past 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 punchline in the process. Several matches into the current campaign it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who number celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – could be prepared to strike while the Glasgow duo influence is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While a lot of the attention in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that Celtic's slightly less terminal decay has been allowed to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have already dropped a considerable number from nine league games this season under their manager. The Celtic manager has developed the distant look of a individual who constantly checking his schedule to see how many days are remaining until his contract ends, and awoke this morning to learn the answer is 246.

"I've never worked harder in all my time at the club," he told the media following the loss, after they had questioned his appetite for anything resembling a championship battle. "So the motivation is present to try and reverse the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the dreadful beginning to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but this year an capital city challenger has entered the mix. In spite of being obliged to function with a war-chest that isn't so much a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have added the money and expertise of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership mix. As well as putting in £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has provided Hearts sole use of his highly confidential data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to discover unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a modest car. Seen at their home venue on matchday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be seen celebrating each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly noticed the oddsmakers had massively underestimated his team's prospects of beating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots as a result.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a statement win," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer the head coach after his team's latest success, their eighth in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for others on the outside looking in. It could alter perceptions. It might validate views that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the lads have provided us. In terms of skill, we appear in a strong position, and certainly in fitness we look in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, it's not a position that the team is accustomed to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the glorious, data-driven truth is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might genuinely have a title race that somebody besides Celtic or Rangers can claim.