M1 Mac mini ethernet issue

Recently bought a new upgraded M1 mini with the 16G RAM and 512Gb drive, amazing machine... except the ethernet port. I had an old cat5e cable connected when I upgraded to Monterey which kept failing, I noted the clips on the cable had become worn out and were probably the cause of the unreliable network signal over ethernet. Bought a basic cat6 cable and tried again, this time to see there was absolutely no ethernet connection when the cable was plugged in. Modem rebooted, Router restarted, Mac restarted, still no connection. Then on a whim I physically reached around the back of the Mac and discovered that even clipped in, the ethernet cable still had room to move. I held the connector into the Mac and lo-and-behold a stable connection. I shouldn't have to return this cable as it is brand new and the header card is of course ripped to shreds. I have an elastic band wedged in to help the clip keep the cable there but it seems Mickey Mouse. Would love to hear some solutions. Could it be that the ethernet port isn't designed to spec?