🔗 Share this article The Reasons Hearts' Historic Title Tilt Isn't as a Shock. JAMBOS BLAZING Maybe 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 result and its consequences for the summit of the standings emerged. While this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which leaves the Jambos leading of the league and a significant margin clear of Celtic, was seismic in nature, nobody who has been following the progress of both team this season will have been in the least astonished by the result. Over the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, reducing the beautiful game to almost a joke in the process. Nine games into the present season it has become clear that Hearts – who count Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – might just be ready to make their move while the Glasgow duo 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 full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at Ibrox has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to fester unnoticed. The reigning champions have so far dropped a considerable number from nine fixtures this season under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has developed the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop consulting his schedule to find out how many days are remaining until his deal ends, and awoke this morning to discover the answer is over two hundred. "No one has put in more effort in all my time at the club," he informed the media following the loss, after they had questioned his appetite for any kind of a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is present to try and reverse the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time." NEW CHALLENGER Given the horrific beginning to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could normally be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to start strongly, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the fray. In spite of being obliged to operate with a budget that isn't so much a small portion of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have introduced the investment and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership mix. As well as putting in £10m during the summer, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts exclusive use of his highly confidential data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool. In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a modest car. Seen at Tynecastle on matchday wearing a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be observed cheering each score with the gusto of a man who had likely realized the oddsmakers had massively misjudged his team's chances of beating the out-of-sorts title holders, and filled his boots as a result. MANAGER'S RESPONSE "In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team's latest success, their eighth win in nine league matches. "It might be for those on the periphery. It might change perceptions. It may confirm opinions that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have given us. Technically, we appear in a strong position, and definitely physically we seem in a good place, so we hope it persists. Of course, it's not a position that the team is used to being in." No, Derek, 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 somebody besides the traditional powers can win.