SYDNEY will be without one of its biggest stars for the rest of the home and away season, but the Swans are relieved the injury outcome from their thrilling loss away to Brisbane isn’t more serious.

Three-time leading goalkicker Tom Papley will be out until finals with an ankle injury, while veteran defender Dane Rampe is likely to miss two weeks with a calf strain.

But coach John Longmire revealed Sydney was fearing both may be out for the remainder of their premiership pursuit.

In Papley's case, the concern was his ankle was broken.

"The good thing is it could have been worse," Longmire said on Tuesday.

"We were relieved to get the results back from the scan. We'll take that considering how he felt on Sunday night.

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"'Ramps' (Dane Rampe) is only 1-2 (weeks). Sunday night we got on the plane thinking a couple of key players might be missing for the rest of the season, but the really good news is they’re not too bad."

Papley and Rampe will join Justin McInerney (knee injury) on the sidelines, but captain Callum Mills will return to take on the Western Bulldogs at the SCG on Sunday.

Will Hayward looks likely to play as well after soldiering on with an ankle injury in the loss to the Lions but there's a wait to see if midfield bull James Rowbottom will recover in time from a facial fracture to take on the Dogs.

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Papley's absence will be a predicament for the Swans though.

Despite the plethora of talent within their ranks, the star small forward is one player that is very difficult to replace.

Sam Wicks is an option to come in, but Longmire admits there may be a reshuffle with the likes of Chad Warner, who has 29 goals for the season, and Luke Parker potentially spending even more time forward.

"We have to think through that and come up with a solution. It's not always one for one, it's about the system, so we're spending some time working through that at the moment."

Longmire opened up for the first time about assistant Dean Cox's decision to reject the senior coach overtures from his former club West Coast and opt to stay in Sydney, despite no formal succession plan being in place.

Dean Cox during Sydney's game with Fremantle in round 18, 2022. Picture: AFL Photos

"All of it came down to how 'Coxy' felt about staying in Sydney and he's really settled in Sydney. We're really fortunate in regard to his commitment to this footy club coming from the other side of the country. It's a great thing for our footy club to have him invested in this footy club now and in the future."

The narrow loss to the Lions was the Swans' fourth defeat of the year, but all of them have been by narrow margins for a cumulative total of just 10 points.

Longmire is adamant it isn't a trend to be overly concerned with.

"Three out of the four games we've had opportunities in the last two minutes to win the game. If you get three out of those four right it's a completely different narrative."