🔗 Share this article Why Hearts' Historic Championship Challenge Shouldn't Come as a Surprise. JAMBOS BLAZING Perhaps the sole unexpected aspect of Heart of Midlothian's victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which surprised people appeared when news of the result and its consequences for the summit of the table circulated. While this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which puts the Edinburgh side leading of the league and eight points clear of Celtic, was seismic in nature, no one who has been following the fortunes of either squad this season will have been even remotely shocked by the result. For each of the past four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to something of a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the present season it has become clear that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – could be prepared to make their move while the Glasgow duo influence is at its weakest. CELTIC'S SLUMP While much of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being endured by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at Ibrox has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decline has been able to worsen below the radar. 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 distant look of a individual who constantly consulting his schedule to find out how many days are left until his contract expires, and woke up this day to discover the number is 246. "No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure here," he informed reporters following the loss, after they had doubted his appetite for anything resembling a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is present to attempt to flip the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time." NEW CHALLENGER Considering the horrific beginning to the campaign being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his men could normally be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the mix. Despite being forced to operate with a budget that isn't so much a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the money and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the SPL equation. As well as putting in ten million pounds during the summer, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts exclusive use of his highly confidential data-driven Jamestown Analytics player identification system. In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to unearth 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 total price of a modest car. Spotted at their home venue on Sunday wearing a club colours, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the bookies had greatly misjudged his side's prospects of beating the struggling champions, and filled his boots accordingly. MANAGER'S REACTION "In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer the head coach after his team's most recent success, their eighth in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It might change opinions. It may confirm views that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have provided us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and certainly physically we seem in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Naturally, this is not a situation that this club is accustomed to being in." Correct, Derek, it isn't. But the wonderful, data-driven truth is that for the initial occasion in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a championship battle that a team other than the traditional powers can win.