Hearts extended their lead at the top of the Scottish Championship this afternoon with a convincing victory over Queen of the South, with Rangers keeping pace after a narrow win over determined Cowdenbeath.

Hearts saw off their visitors 4-1 despite giving away a penalty that Iain Russell converted to cancel out a 19th-minute opener from James Keatings.

Queen of the South looked as though they might hang on for the point as the clock ticked down, but Danny Wilson put the Edinburgh side back on track with 20 minutes left on the clock, and Prince Buaben made it 3-1 five minutes later.

Adam Eckersley provided the icing on the cake with 10 minutes remaining, moving Robbie Neilson's men onto 41 points, nine ahead of their nearest rivals for the title.

Rangers had to endure a frustrating afternoon at Ibrox, with Cowdenbeath proving difficult to break down. Ally McCoist's men finally found the back of the net on the hour mark as Dean Shiels ensured that they lose no ground on Hearts.

The big winners on the day were bottom side Livingston who put five goals past Raith Rovers, though it was not enough to lift them off the foot of the table.

There were five different goal scorers for the West Lothian strugglers, with Jordan White, Mark Burchill and Gary Glen all netting before the break. Daniel Mullen and Michael McKenna added their names to the scoresheet after the interval.

Raith remain comfortable in mid table, though Grant Murray will have had some stern words for his players after they rolled over for the division's basement boys.

Elsewhere, Dumbarton and Falkirk managed 1-0 wins against Alloa Athletic and Hibernian respectively.

Results in full: Alloa 0-1 Dumbarton, Falkirk 1-0 Hibernian, Hearts 4-1 Queen of the South, Raith Rovers 1-5 Livingston, Rangers 1-0 Cowdenbeath