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SYDNEY Swans supporters could be excused for thinking 'here we go again' when Jarrad McVeigh pulled up lame and Gary Rohan fell to the ground clutching his knee during Saturday night's semi-final triumph over Adelaide.

After all, it was only last year that a shocking injury toll put the brakes on the Swans' shot at redemption for their bitter 2014 Grand Final failure.

The undermanned Swans went out in straight sets after falling nine agonising points short of Fremantle in a qualifying final and then limping into a home semi-final against North Melbourne.

John Longmire's men were heroic against the Dockers and almost earned the crucial week-off despite missing stars Lance Franklin (mental illness), Kieren Jack (knee), Luke Parker (broken leg) and Nick Smith (hamstring) – and with Sam Reid (hamstring) going down mid-game.

To be honest, the Swans were ripe for the picking when the Roos came to town a week later.

Now with important big man Kurt Tippett sidelined by a fractured jaw and NAB AFL Rising Star winner Callum Mills nursing a hamstring, the similarities might have felt unjustly familiar to Swans fans.

But this time the outlook is much brighter.

For a start, the sheer weight of injuries is nothing like last year.

While McVeigh (calf) and Rohan appear likely to miss Friday night's preliminary final against Geelong at the MCG, Tippett believes he will be back and Mills might also be available for a possible job on Cats enigma Steven Motlop or Daniel Menzel.

Tough nut Zak Jones might also be in the defensive mix after a heavy concussion two weeks ago and ruckman Callum Sinclair (knee) might not be too far away.

Structurally, the Swans are sound, they are less reliant on Franklin in attack and the list is resilient – with seven debutants stepping up and adding significant depth in 2016.

Importantly, the vaunted midfield group of Josh Kennedy, Dan Hannebery, McVeigh, Tom Mitchell and Parker is mostly intact for the crucial battle against Patrick Dangerfield, Joel Selwood and co.

The Swans should travel to Melbourne believing they can upset the Cats.

The 'Bloods' boast three wins from their past four games at the MCG – the sole loss coming by a point against Richmond in round eight – and they were the only visiting team to knock over Geelong at Simonds Stadium this season.

Neither McVeigh (15 disposals) nor Rohan (10) was among the Swans' best in that 38-point hiding.

The Swans might be battle-weary or they could be battle-hardened by the time they face the Cats, who will have played only once in the past 27 days by the preliminary final.

The pre-finals bye has thrown an unknown into the mix this September.

Will it benefit the Swans or the Cats?

Only time will tell.