Ten original Islanders and bombshell Ava were settling into Love Island Australia, with the first couples already facing competition. After the ghosting reunion and Lachie's hot-tub departure, there was plenty left to sort out.

Shawnee Wants Her Man Back

Lachie's date with Ava picked up where the premiere left off, with flirting in the hot tub and a very unhappy Shawnee watching from the villa.

Ava wanted someone ambitious and interested in fitness, and the chat came easily. Lachie made it clear he was keeping his options open after only a few hours. Shawnee, meanwhile, was already waiting for him to return, find her and make her feel like his first choice.

When Ava joined the rest of the group, she explained that she had chosen Jack and Lachie from their photos because they looked cheeky. Both dates had delivered the conversation she wanted.

The 24-year-old, who is from the UK and lives in Perth, had made an entrance. Shawnee needed a little longer to warm to her.

A Busy First Night, And Some Very Different Mornings

Jack gave Natalie the reassurance she wanted after his own date with Ava. They kissed, then spent the night cuddling and kissing in bed.

Ava was sleeping alone right beside them. She had rather more opportunity to hear that connection developing than she would have liked.

By morning, Natalie was frustrated again. Jack was finding time to chat with other people, but had not pulled her aside. Spotting a tattoo reading Trinity on his ankle did not help her mood.

When she later found him sitting with Ava, Natalie joined them. She wanted his attention back, and subtlety was having a day off.

Other couples were moving at very different speeds. Phoebe was actively hoping Ava would take Jarrar off her hands after their connection landed in friendship territory. Oli admitted he was not getting much from Layla and had held back from cuddling her.

Amanda and Keanu had enjoyed a cuddle, though. After turning down his attempted kiss the day before, Amanda admitted she had judged him too quickly and was interested in exploring their connection.

A Secret Garden With One Big Catch

A text introduced the Secret Garden, giving the Islanders another place to get to know each other. There was a catch: they could not take the person they were already coupled up with.

For single Ava, that opened up plenty of possibilities. For the established couples, it was another reminder that choosing someone on day one was only the beginning.

Keanu was certainly keeping that in mind. Despite his promising chat with Amanda, he pulled Ava aside, complimented her and worked through some extremely enthusiastic flirting.

Asked whether he was a boys' boy, he tried “I'm a you boy”. He was getting his applications in early.

Lachie And Shawnee Compare Dating Speeds

Away from the group, Lachie wanted to understand Shawnee's reaction to his date. She explained that she was dramatic and expressive, and could look more bothered than she actually felt.

Their timelines were considerably less compatible. Lachie could spend months talking to someone before deciding a relationship might go somewhere. Shawnee could be mentally planning the wedding on day one.

He reassured her that she was the person he was pursuing at that point, and they kissed. Shawnee left feeling very good about their chemistry.

Then came a game designed to let everyone kiss someone else. Excellent timing.

Secret Squirrels Gets Personal

The first challenge, Secret Squirrels, sent the Islanders through an obstacle course in squirrel costumes, collecting anonymous confessions hidden in nuts. To guess who a secret belonged to, they had to kiss that person before the real answer was revealed.

Several quickly decided that identifying the right person was less important than kissing the one they fancied.

Ava owned up to putting dog faeces through a cheating ex's letterbox. Phoebe was revealed as the person who had fallen from a first-storey window during sex, prompting an understandably sheepish “Sorry, Mum and Dad”.

Amanda's drawer of BDSM toys was another revelation, and Keanu was enthusiastic about that discovery. Their own challenge kisses built on the attraction from their earlier chat, with Amanda happily choosing him when her turn came.

Oli used his turn to kiss Phoebe, admitting that was what he wanted regardless of the clue. He enjoyed it, and she was later equally positive when he was identified as the man who said he had slept with six women in two days.

Layla also took her chance to explore, choosing Jack for a kiss when the girls encouraged her.

Jarrar Has A Very Good Day

Jarrar correctly picked Natalie for the confession about a psychic predicting a Love Island win. Natalie explained that the reading had suggested love and money might be coming her way, which was rather less definite than the challenge card made it sound.

His kiss with her would not be their last of the game. After Jack chose to kiss someone else, Natalie picked Jarrar in return and admitted there was sexual chemistry as well as a little revenge involved.

Shawnee chose Jarrar too, after Lachie deliberately kissed Ava to test their connection. Phoebe also picked him. By the end, Jarrar was delighted with the attention and covered in pink dust.

For Shawnee, Lachie's choice undid the comfort of their earlier conversation. She felt confused and made a fool of. Lachie, in turn, read her choice of Jarrar as retaliation.

The confession about a hookup two days before entering the villa belonged to Shawnee. Lachie was uncomfortable with it and felt they were on different wavelengths, making their disagreement about how quickly to commit look even harder to resolve.

Jack's Travel Stories Lose Their Charm

The boys' confessions kept coming. Keanu was identified for comparing heavy make-up to men wearing lifts in their shoes, a view that did not impress Natalie. He also owned up to sending intimate pictures to the boys' group chat.

Lachie was named in a confession about a foursome involving a friend's ex. Jack, meanwhile, was identified as the man claiming more than 50 one-night stands.

Natalie's reaction was immediate: “Am I going to be 51?”

Jack explained his history through travel, nights out and experience. He also acknowledged that the Trinity tattoo was connected to someone from that history, giving Natalie another reason to wonder how seriously he was taking her.

A later confession about group sex in a Bali hostel was also his. Jack appeared pleased to own it, while Natalie was increasingly upset by how casually he spoke about it.

She had wanted a man who would commit. After their previous history outside the villa and their affectionate first night, the prospect of being another casual encounter hit particularly hard.

Ava's later kiss added to Shawnee's frustration too. By the end of the challenge, both women were unhappy with where their couples stood.

Ava's Choice Is Still To Come

No one was dumped in episode two. The next-episode preview set up the season's first firepit, with Ava choosing a boy and a warning that anyone left single would be sent home.

After a day of testing connections, someone would soon have to live with a choice.

Love Island Australia continues tonight at 8.40pm on Nine and 9Now.