It felt like the year from hell for Shimona Jok.

The Collingwood Magpies were made defunct as their players scrambled to find contracts for 2024, the side finished with the wooden spoon for a second time, and an 11-week stint without pay due to the ongoing CPA dispute – during which she got married – tested her absolute limits.

But there was light at the end of the tunnel for the Jamaican shooter, who was picked up last week as the 11th player for the Melbourne Mavericks in their inaugural season.

The signing wasn't without its controversy, as the criteria set by the Super Netball league for the 11th player implied the spot was for an up-and-coming Australian athlete that would be eligible to represent the Diamonds in accordance with World Netball Regulations.

However, clever Mavericks coach Tracey Neville found a loophole with Jok's permanent residency, and the signing was approved to bring an experienced international and seasoned Super Netball star (70 caps) into the Mavericks' wider team.

Jok was already going to be on a $5,000 training partner contract with the Mavericks but a step-up to the 11th player means she'll now receive a six-month minimum salary of $22,000, with the option to be rotated in and out of the Mavericks' game-day 10 throughout the season.

Which is way more job security than Jok had considered she'd find this year, after, in her own words, "shit went sideways" in 2023.

"We just had a little chat about the possibility of it, but we weren't quite sure if it was going to happen with the guidelines Netball Australia sent out," Jok said.

"In the end we thought, why not give it a go and if it doesn't work out that's okay, I'm still in the environment as a training partner.

"Knowing the 11th spot was up for grabs, all I needed to do was just show up to training, work hard, be positive and show them that last year's hardships are not going to define me.

"It's going to build me, make me better and encourage me to work harder, so I'm really grateful for the opportunity and not going to take anything for granted."

Most of the noise around Jok's signing at 11 has come from her involvement in the Jamaican Sunshine Girls set-up since 2017, which classes her as an import and yet somehow, still eligible for Diamonds.

But it's not Jok's fault that World Netball's rules about a player switching allegiances seem to centre entirely on whether they took the court at the World Cup, which Jok did not, as she was a reserve.

There has always been a bit of confusion around World Netball's eligibility rules. Many thought that if a player had represented one nation during a four-year World Cup cycle, then they must wait a specific time period before representing another.

With Jok's selection, that seems to have been debunked as long as they haven't played at the major tournament, and have a family connection (parent or grandparent) or Australian residency for at least two years (not a temporary visa), which many imports may have been granted already to play in the Super Netball league.

Whether World Netball need to tighten this, as it feels like it makes a mockery of national selection, is a debate for another day.

But knowing now that she is technically eligible to play for Australia, a country she has called home for seven straight seasons and has well and truly adopted the accent of, ABC Sport was curious to know if her international aspirations were still 100 per cent with Jamaica.

"Well, I'm still a little bit 50-50 there, because I feel like my focus right here, right now, is just trying to secure a Super Netball contract for next year," Jok said.

"My priorities have switched because I don't want to be in this position ever again, trying to find my feet and working out where I went wrong.

"Representing the national team will not always be there, once the international games are done, it's like what's your actual job? What do you do beyond that?"

So how would she respond if say, Diamonds coach Stacey Marinkovich called?

"If I'm being honest, I wouldn't even know what to do," Jok said.

"It would be a shock but then like it's just also about being open minded really, whilst maintaining respect and not just going out and doing whatever I want to do, you know?"

Do we know? It feels a little bit cryptic, but it's a smart move for Jok to keep her options open.

Asked whether she felt any frustration on missing out on a top spot to play with Jamaica at the World Cup and instead having to watch from the bench as a reserve, Jok said this:

"The only issue I had was that I didn't get told I was in the team until it was announced on social media, however, to still be a part of it I was so happy, mainly because of one person, and that person was Latanya Wilson.

"I went there with the intention of being her send-out girl, if she needed something for recovery, I'd go get it, if she needed food, I'd go get it.

"Being able to be there for her gave me a different perspective on it all, whilst also helping everyone else too, because it's a high-pressure environment and sometimes the team managers only have two hands, and they'd do well with an extra pair.

"If the girls needed their water bottles washing, I'd do that, I'd clean up after them, whatever they needed, I was that person and I felt really privileged to do that, because I know I played a massive part in helping them win bronze."

Standing on the podium and receiving a medal was one of the obvious highlights for Jok in a year that felt like it delivered a lot of bad news.

Another was marrying her partner, basketballer Buay Jok, who was her rock throughout it all.

Anybody that has planned a wedding before knows how stressful and financially challenging it can be, however, not many would have experienced it at the same time that their career was in jeopardy.

"Last year was really hard, I'm not going to lie," Jok said.

"Mentally, physically, emotionally … There were times where I was saying to my husband 'I don't want to get married anymore, I don't know what is happening with my work.'

"I was frustrated, not eating or sleeping, just not thinking right and he said, 'It's okay we'll get through this together.'

"We even went to Adelaide with my host parents, he's a pastor, and he helped me realise that although this was happening in netball, that I also have to think about my life outside of being an athlete and all the friendships and the families I've found.

"I leant on them a lot — my host Dad, [VNL coach] Marg Lind and [her daughter] Maggie, [Collingwood coaches] Nicole Richardson and Kate Upton, and [Pies teammate] Geva Mentor – as well as my husband of course, who is my personal teddy bear.

"I feel like I owe them a lot because sometimes I'd be calling them, crying on the phone and after I'd hang up, I'd feel the utmost of energy … They really helped me get through."

As we approach the second round of Super Netball, there is every possibility that Jok could be called up to represent the Mavericks against the NSW Swifts.

The side lacked a genuine target in the circle in round one and put too much pressure on Eleanor Cardwell to carry their attack, so someone like Jok could be a smart inclusion.

Jok also believes she has grown so much as a player, representing the City West Falcons in the Victorian Netball League and treating criticism on social media as genuine feedback.

"I feel like defenders aren't going to know what to expect if I do get the chance to play Super Netball, because the Shimona Nelson last year is different to the Shimona Jok this year," she said.

"I may not take the court and that's okay, at least I'm still in the group, watching, analysing, making my notes, giving my input at training … It feels like I'm in a really good spot, like a win-win situation.

"I've been working with Marg, adding variations to my game and I don't want to give away too much, but I've been using comments I've seen on social media too.

"When they say, like I'm not a moving shooter and that I need to create space, I'm taking that on the chin and treating it as really good feedback, because I'm going to work on it."