Young men are using social media to organise illegal cock-fighting at secret locations up and down the country. 

An under-cover investigation has found they are also importing aggressive breeds to make their brutal bouts more deadly. 

Journalist Patricia Devlin has revealed the details in an exclusive report by 'Noteworthy' for The Journal.

“There has been a resurgence in Ireland of cockfighting - a blood sport that was outlawed 200-years-ago,” she said. 

“We have discovered that a lot more younger males are taking part in these illegal activities in organised matches and are importing aggressive chicken breeds from as far away as Pakistan.” 

Two fighting cocks square off. 

Ms Devlin said the fighting bouts are taking place right across the country. 

“I could name you four or five places but again with this investigation, we’ve had to be very careful,” she said. 

“This is a very dangerous sport; the people involved can be dangerous but it certainly shocked me as a journalist finding out just how much it’s taking place and that even there are [people] solely breeding chickens for this type of activity.” 

People who engage in cockfighting risk a fine or prison sentence.

Main image: Two fighting cocks square off. Picture by: Alamy.com