Vinnie Jones In Hunting Row

Hollywood hardman Vinnie Jones has been attacked by animal rights activists in the UK for glamorising blood sports.

The League Against Cruel Sports (LACS) has ordered Jones to stay away from the forthcoming National Coursing Meeting in Clonmel, Ireland, where the SWORDFISH star planned to carry out his love of hare coursing - during which hares are hunted using greyhounds.

The event, scheduled for later this month (JAN06), is expected to be more popular than ever, since the sport was made illegal in Britain - so the LACS is urging Jones to boycott the event and persuade others to follow suit.

LACS spokesperson DR JANE EVANS says, "It's deplorable that somebody like Vinnie Jones in the public eye should be supporting animal cruelty. His support for the cruel sport is only serving to popularise and glamorise it to others, especially young people."

Jones owns a number of greyhounds, which he regularly races in the UK.

Last year (05), his dog Boavista reached the semi-final of the Clonmel Derby.