PROFESSIONAL rugby player Conor Phillips was revealed as the surprise new OG for this year's Love Island. The Limerick native, 25, is being brought in to replace Kyle Ashman, who was axed just days before the show kicked off following a machete attack arrest. Conor has now taken his place in the starting line-up for the latest series of the hit ITV2 dating show. The former Munster winger is no stranger to pressure but now he's swapping rugby drills for recoupling drama as he jets off to the Majorcan villa. WHO IS CONOR PHILLIPS? Conor, who was born in 1999, grew up in Co Limerick and attended Crescent College in Dooradoyle. The 25-year-old describes himself as "the class clown type" and told how from "being in big teams and groups" all the time, he's "always mixing things up, stirring the pot". Outside of sport, he loves to travel and often shares snaps from his trips on Instagram, where he's already racked up more than 6,000 followers. RUGBY ROOTS Conor played schools rugby with College Crescent and went on to represent Munster at under-18, under-19 and under-20. He later lined out for Young Munster and was part of the team that defeated Garyowen to win the Munster Senior Cup in 2022. Conor rose through the ranks in Irish rugby after impressing with Munster's A team and in the Celtic Cup. He was brought into Munster's academy in 2021 and made his senior debut the following year. The winger played twice in the 2022/23 United Rugby Championship - first against Zebre Parma in Italy and then away to Connacht a week later. He was released from the squad at the end of the season. Before that, Conor played for Ireland at U18 and U19 level and was part of the U20 squad that won the Six Nations Grand Slam in 2019. In 2021, he was called up to the Ireland 7s team and went on to play in major international tournaments in cities like Vancouver, Singapore and Hong Kong. LOVE ISLAND Now, the Munster man is set to touch down in Majorca for the brand new season of Love Island. He is following in the footsteps of Limerick lad and Ireland 7s star Greg O'Shea, who won the show back in 2019. Conor will be stepping into the villa alongside twelve other hopefuls, including Dublin native Megan Forte Clarke. He has said he's looking for "someone who is really sure of themselves, ambitious, a bit of a go-getter and good craic. I like dark eyes and I don’t mind a dominant woman." When it comes to turn offs, he says: "Being too needy, or needing to do everything together. I like someone to be independent and do their own thing and then we come together and do our thing." In his official announcement pic, Conor is flanked by beauties Helena Ford and Megan Clarke. The rugby player promises to bring some mischief to the villa, describing himself as "the class clown type". He said: "Being in big teams and groups all the time, I'm always mixing things up, stirring the pot." The Limerick native said presenter Maya Jama would be impressed with his flirting skills. He said: "I ask girls if they want to go halves on a baby. It doesn’t work, but it gets them laughing. It’s an ice-breaker, not a serious question of course."