Jack, who hasn't played an AFL game since the qualifying final loss to Fremantle in 2015, is one of three changes to the team that was soundly beaten by GWS last weekend.

Defenders Nic Newman and Jeremy Laidler have also been recalled, while Harry Marsh is out with a hamstring injury and Jordan Foote has been omitted.

Aliir Aliir remains in the reserves, while veteran Jarrad McVeigh will be rested for at least another week as he nurses a hamstring niggle, although the club believes he has shaken off the pre-season calf tear that cost him the first month of the AFL season.

"He hasn't had any setbacks, he was just a little bit tight at the end of last week in his hamstring," Swans head of football Tom Harley said.

"In his calf, where he has had challenges, he is OK so we will give Jarrad another week and he will train fully and be available, all things being equal, next weekend."

The bottom-placed Swans head into Saturday's crunch clash against the struggling Blues at the Melbourne Cricket Ground desperate to notch their first win of the season.

Coach John Longmire refuses to rule out finals for his struggling team, but an unfathomable loss against Carlton would surely leave fans putting a red pen through Sydney's top-eight hopes.

"The season's certainly not a write-off as far as we're concerned but we need to make sure that we get it back on track and we can only do that by playing the brand of footy that we know we can," Longmire said.

"All of our team is [underperforming]. You look at our numbers, you look at our performances and it's hard to shy away from any of that.

"We haven't had many good players in that first five weeks of the season, that's why we are where we are.

"They've all got individual backgrounds to that but ultimately they haven't been able to perform to the level they have been.

"Some have been down on confidence, some physically have suffered like Kieren but in the end you need to find a way. We're confident they'll find a way."

Carlton sit 16th on the ladder with just the one win, and were hammered by Port Adelaide last Friday.

The Swans are warm favourites to open their account this weekend, and games against Brisbane and winless North Melbourne follow – a huge opportunity to arrest Sydney's form slump.

"If you're sitting on top of the ladder, we want to play well this week and if we're sitting where we are at the moment, we want to play well this week," Longmire said.

"That's what we've always done and that's what we need to do.

"We see every week as an opportunity to get some momentum and this week's no different to last week as far as how we view the game.

"There's no easy games in AFL football, you just look across the rounds every week, there are no easy ones. We need to play better regardless of who we play.

"Carlton's first half on the weekend was pretty good, I'm sure they'll get some players returning this week."