Ten man Hearts tightened their grip once again at the William Hill Premiership summit after seeing off stubborn Dundee 1-0 at Tynecastle Park.
In a match marked by few chances, Oisin McEntee's superb second half header was enough to see off a Dee side that employed every trick in the book to restrict Hearts' opportunities.
Aside from three points, with the Jambos opening a five point gap for at least 24 hours, Lawrence Shankland and Cammy Devlin both marked their return to the matchday squad, whilst Frankie Kent was issued a late red card after picking up a second yellow card in injury time.
There were some late changes to the starting XI prior to kick-off, with Craig Halkett pulling out with a back injury before the warm-up as Michael Steinwender took his place. The vacancy on the bench was filled by Alan Forrest, with Halkett's armband as skipper handed to the returning Cammy Devlin.
Chances were few and far between in the opening 20 minutes, with both sides enjoying spells on the ball; a shanked effort from Cameron Cosgrove from outside the box that sailed over the Jambos' crossbar the only notable moment of discussion.
After a listless start, some delightful interplay saw the Jambos go close after 27 minutes; a crafty backheel by Jordi Altena saw Claudio Braga skip past his marker and go for goal, but a last gasp tackle saw the ball diverted behind as Hearts fruitlessly appealed for the spot kick.
It was truly a half where very little happened, but in the first minute of added time, Hearts had a golden chance to claim the lead after Claudio Braga's flicked header saw Landry Kabore through on goal with the 'keeper off his line - but the Burkina Faso international's attempted lob was high and wide as both sides went in level at the break.
HT: Heart of Midlothian 0-0 Dundee
Some more attacking impetus was required, and just five minutes into the second half, Hearts started to show signs of it. Claudio Braga led the charge forward before having a dig from distance - his ranged strike forcing Jon McCracken into an uncomfortable save.
By this stage, Dundee were employing every trick in the book to thwart Hearts' advance - shirt pulling and blocking free-kicks - with tempers flaring on more than one occasion for both sides.
Marc Leonard saw a free-kick from 25-yards sail into McCracken's gloves, before following up with another vicious snapshot from distance that forced a corner, the returning Lawrence Shankland striking on the volley to force another stop.
Steven Pressley's men were not without their moments, and substitute Simon Murray threatened after 76 minutes as he looked to lob Finlay Robertson's hammered pass over Schwolow, but saw his chance go astray.
At long last, with 77 minutes on the clock, Hearts finally broke the deadlock when Oisin McEntee leapt like a salmon to thump home Marc Leonard's free-kick and send Tynecastle into raptures.
Hearts really started to get into the groove, and chances started to tumble from the golden Gorgie sky; Alexandros Kyziridis scrapering down the left before threading across to Shankland in the middle - the number nine spinning on his heels before drilling a low shot that almost beat McCracken.
It was going to be another white-knuckle ride to the finish line with such a slender lead, with matters complicated after Frankie Kent was shown a second yellow card following a foul against Charlie Reilly.
McCracken went up for the Dundee corner as they chased the game, but Hearts were able to beat them back, and Lawrence Shankland was unlucky to see his long range effort go narrowly astray after catching the 'keeper off hie line.
Hearts: Schwolow, Kent, Steinwender, McCart, Braga (Chesnokov 85'), Kabore (Shankland 54'), Devlin (Baningime 76'), Altena (Spittal 54'), McEntee, Leonard, Kyziridis (Forrest 85')
Subs: Fulton, Baningime, Shankland, Borchgrevink, Forrest, Spittal, Kerjota, Mato, Chesnokov
Dundee: McCracken, Astley, Wright, Robertson (Jones 77'), Hay (Murray 71'), Halliday, Yogane (Reilly 63'), Westley (Cotterill 63'), Congreve (Wright 71'), Graham, Hamilton
Subs: O'Hara, Koumetio, Hines-Samuel, Murray, Reilly, Cotterill, Wright, Bevan, Jones
Attendance: 18,827
