Who is Gemma Owens' ex Jacques O’Neill? Meet Love Island UK's new contestant

Love Island UK 2022 will welcome another contestant, Jacques O'Neill, as he brings "laughter" and "good vibes" to the ITV dating show. The series confirmed that he was the latest contestant to look for romance. This time, he will be tackling his past in an effort to try to win back his ex Gemma Owens.

The hit reality series, which premiered on Monday, June 6, 2022 at 9 pm on ITV 2, saw 11 islanders enter the villa and stay to potentially find the love of their lives. Initially, the contestants would be paired with different islanders to help them find romance and those who remain single after the coupling will be eliminated from the show.

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Love Island UK contestant Jacques O’Neill will enter the show to get together with ex-girlfriend

The 23 year old contestant is a professional rugby player from Cumbria. He dated former Liverpool striker Michael Owens' daughter Gemma Owens, who is also a contestant on Love Island UK 2022. In the teaser at the end of the previous episode, viewers witnessed Gemma saying:

"Oh my god, that’s my ex-boyfriend!"

Jacques and Gemma split last year, but they reportedly left their relationship on good terms. The latter told fellow contestant Liam Llewellyn (who decided to leave the island last week) that he ex-boyfriend and her England ace dad were close and bonded over their mutual love of sport.

A source revealed to the Mirror that there was still some "unfinished business" between the former couple and they still had feelings for each other, which might make it hard for both to be in the villa together and just be friends.

The source continued:

“They broke up because they were both focusing on their careers. Gemma was away a lot for dressage competitions while Jacques was dedicated to his rugby career. But there isn’t any bad blood between them. It just wasn’t the right time.”

When asked on the television network why he was single and the reason behind him coming on to Love Island UK, Jacques said:

"I split up with my ex and then I was seeing someone else. I was concentrating so much on my rugby career and then I had that injury. I think it needs to be the right person, at the right time. But I was saying to my mum the other day that I want a girl. And I’m now ready to settle down."

Earlier in his career, Jacques played for Askam ARLFC before being signed to the Castleford Tigers academy. The contestant has also played for Leigh Centurions and Halifax in the Betfred Championship on loan and dual registration.

Shortly before the Love Island UK contestant confirmed his debut on the show, the Castleford Tigers also shared a statement on social media and in a press release that stated:

"Castleford Tigers can confirm that the Club has agreed to release Jacques O’Neill from his contract to allow him to pursue another opportunity."

Fans of the show will witness Jacques enter the villa, much to the surprise of Gemma, who was stolen from Davide Sanclimenti by Luca Bish during Friday’s recoupling. However, the rugby player assured viewers that he would not let the competition stand in the way of pursuing what he wants.

The Love Island UK contestant exclaimed he “wasn’t arsed” about stepping on anyone’s toes and would go for what he wanted. Jacques said:

“I do think I’m a catch. We all think we’re a catch, don’t we? I’m loyal, I’m respectful and I’ve got good manners. I’ll look after someone close to me to the full extent I can.”

Jacques also spoke about wanting to become a father in a couple of years. He said:

“I would have a baby in two or three years. I think I’d be good with babies too, they’d be good looking wouldn’t they?”

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Love Island UK is filmed at Majorca Villa in Spain and will feature contestants who will have no contact with the outside world. They will utilize their time to find themselves the perfect partner, with a chance of a possible elimination on remaining single after the re-coupling tasks. The winning couple will receive a grand prize of £50,000.