When Sydney Swans onballer Nic Fosdike goes toe-to-toe with the best midfield group in the country in round one, his disastrous start to the pre-season will be the furthest thing from his mind.

The hard-running midfielder has worked hard to ensure he will be at full fitness when the Swans meet reigning premier West Coast at Telstra Stadium on March 31, but his pre-Christmas fitness regime was over before it began.

"In the first session of pre-season I tore my calf," Fosdike said.

"We were doing a 6km time trial, and it was probably in the first kilometre that I did it. I thought it was just cramp at first, so I basically just kept running and actually finished the run, but it stiffened up quite badly afterwards and I ended up missing about four weeks of training."

That sort of injury can put a dent in a player's summer and ruin their plans for the following season.

But a solid, uninterrupted batch of heavy training enabled Fosdike to catch-up to his teammates in the fitness stakes and he is ready to continue his vital role for the Swans this year, a role that many AFL players shy away from.

Often starting matches on the interchange bench, Fosdike provides his side with much-needed impact when he gets his chance to make an impression.

While players once viewed a spell on the bench as a kick in the guts, 'Fossy' knows that given today's high-octane, free-flowing brand of football, players like himself that are crucial when run and fresh legs are needed at the end of matches.

"We've got a pretty set midfield rotation, so I often start the first 10 minutes on the bench then come on after that," Fosdike said.

"These days guys pretty heavily rotate. I know that some guys wouldn't like coming on at the 10-minute mark, but I don't mind it.

"Some people feel they have to work to get into the game, I feel pretty comfortable as soon as I get out there.

"We have a pretty team-orientated style of play, so it's not too hard to get involved."

Fosdike, who played all but one of the Swans matches last year, is looking forward to going head-to-head with the Eagles – the team he considers to have the best group of midfielders in the competition.

But he says the match won't be about exacting revenge from last year's epic grand final.

"I don’t think it's any sort of retribution or anything; they won the flag and good luck to them … we won the year before," he said.

"(The teams have played) some fantastic games over the last year or two, as everyone knows. You play footy because you want to play in big games. I'm sure the opening game will be another great one."