If there is an opposite of a 'September specialist', someone like former Brisbane Lions ruckman Clark Keating, who saved his best form and fitness for the finals, it could be the unfortunate McGlynn.
Two years ago he was the hard-luck story of the Swans' premiership success, straining his hamstring in the qualifying final victory over Adelaide and missing the rest of the year.
Last season he had injury and suspension issues between rounds 17-19 and missed the semi-final win over Carlton with a calf problem, although he did return for the preliminary final loss to Fremantle.
In 2014, playing in a new role predominantly through the midfield, McGlynn has been one of the Swans' most consistent players all year.
Named among the best in the club's victory over Port Adelaide two weeks ago, he has since picked up another calf injury that kept him out of last Saturday's win over St Kilda.
McGlynn, who turned 29 earlier this month, won't face the Western Bulldogs in Melbourne this week, but coach John Longmire is optimistic he will be back for the Swans' final home and away match against Richmond.
"He won't play this week, he'll probably go for a slow jog and start his training program as of today," Longmire told reporters on Friday.
"He's a chance next week, but we'll make that decision next week.
"At the moment he's feeling good and starts his running program today and over the weekend and we'll see how he goes next week."
It was a prognosis echoed earlier in the week by Swans' physio Matt Cameron, who said McGlynn's chances of facing the Tigers were "looking really good".
Calf injuries have a poor reputation in the AFL, as there have been repeated cases of them lingering for some time, but Longmire stressed that wasn’t always the case.
"Yeah, but they can also be easily played with as well," he said.
"We've had a number of players play with calf injuries the week after.
"They're all different, so you can't categorise them in the one basket."
Josh Kennedy (hamstring) will miss his first match since joining the Swans, a 127-game streak coming to a close, and Craig Bird (knee) is also out, but both are a strong chance of facing Richmond.
Nick Smith (back) and Rhyce Shaw (ankle) should both return this week, while Tom Mitchell is in the extended squad and is some chance of his first senior game since round four.
If the Swans win their final two matches, they will almost certainly finish the season atop the AFL ladder, but Longmire was typically cagey when asked how he felt his side was placed so close to September.
"I'll tell you on Sunday," he said."It's an important game for us, there's plenty to play for and we've obviously got a couple of our key players out and we need to make sure we play well.
"That's what our focus is."
