On Friday night the reigning premiers were missing nine from last year's Grand Final side, but still withstood a fierce Carlton comeback to post a 22-point win at a sodden SCG.
Dane Rampe, Brandon Jack and Xavier Richards - all taken in last year's rookie draft - proved up to the task against the Blues.
Rampe, now a mainstay of the Swans' defence, showed desperation and a willingness to take the game on. Jack, the younger brother of co-captain Kieren, provided a clean set of heels and looked far too comfortable for a 19-year-old playing his second game.
Richards - the younger brother of defender Ted who was handed a last-minute debut when Mitch Morton sensed his quad wasn't right in the warm-up - had limited time to impress as the substitute. But even Richards did his part, helping set up the decisive Ben McGlynn goal that snuffed out Carlton's momentum when it was just two goals off the lead in the final quarter.
Throw in Tom Mitchell and Jed Lamb, both vital cogs in the Swans' midfield against Carlton, and it's a decidedly different team to the one that beat Hawthorn to claim the ultimate success last season.
"It's good that we've got the young guys coming in and stepping up. We've got a lot of senior guys out at the moment," McGlynn said at the Swans' recovery on Saturday.
"It's a credit to the young guys that they're actually listening and learning in the reserves under (coach) Jared Crouch.
"They're implementing those things in their own game and when they step into the seniors it's no different. The intensity goes up, but we all execute the same game plan."
Star recruit Kurt Tippett has also added an extra dimension to the Swans' forward line.
"He's played two games in the wet and he's been pretty good, so we're looking forward to a dry game with Kurt up forward," McGlynn said.
"He was super last night he's living up to everything that we expected and it's a credit to the way he's gone about it."
McGlynn said stalwart Adam Goodes was hoping to return from a knee injury in the side's clash with Melbourne next Sunday. Lewis Jetta (shin) and Sam Reid (quad) are also expected to push for a recall.
