Sydney star Josh Kennedy admits he doubted whether he made the right call to take over the captaincy amid the club's horror start to the season.

The midfield bull replaced Jarrad McVeigh and Kieren Jack after the pair were surprisingly demoted at the end of last year but his first season at the helm appeared a write-off after the Swans lost their first six matches.

Stern words were had within the club after last year's grand finalists plummeted to the bottom of the ladder. Kennedy was not exempt from the introspection.

With the club enduring its worst start to a campaign since the dark days of 1993, Kennedy was wondering himself if he had erred in taking the captaincy. 

"Absolutely you question what you're doing, if you're the right man for the job," Kennedy said days out from playing his 200th game.

"Being a leader within the football club you're always questioning what you can do to help your teammates and the team. Those questions were certainly asked after 0-6 and pretty pointed internally.

"There was a lot going through my head. Pretty tough start, a baptism of fire the first six rounds.

"I've been blessed with the great coaching staff and leadership group and teammates that have been able to lock in and turn it around. It's been really great to be a part of and a really great team effort from the board down.

"At the end of the season we'll be able to reflect and pick out the things that were the catalyst for turning the season around and use them going forward."

The Swans have not only resurrected their campaign, they are now rated one of the leading fancies to claim the flag after seven consecutive wins.

They will start overwhelming favourites against Hawthorn on Friday night although the Hawks have been their bogey side in recent seasons, having won just three of 11 since the 2012 grand final. Alastair Clarkson's men are the last side to knock off Sydney.

While there were mitigating factors for the Swans that night, with Jake Lloyd concussed in the opening minutes and Sam Reid out shortly after half-time, the Swans struggled to combat the Hawks' high-possession game.

"Our defensive structure has to be right on to make sure we can prevent them from chipping it around and closing their outlets and forcing them down the line if that's possible," Kennedy said. "It's a real strength of theirs."

The other take-home message that night for the Swans was their inability to close out the game. Youngster Callum Mills had a chance to break the deadlock but opted to pass on the run instead of taking a shot. From the turnover, the Hawks ferried the ball to the other end where Jarryd Roughead kicked the winner.

"In the crunch time of a game there's a lot you can take out of it; how to play the game state in the last few minutes, what we could have done better," Kennedy said.

"Since that we've done pretty well in those scenarios, which has been good."

Kennedy's career was at the crossroads when he left Hawthorn but he joins the 200-game club on Friday night as one of the game's premier midfielders.

"The mindset was to go up there, give it your best shot, worst case scenario is you have three years' experience living in another state and come back a bit more well rounded," Kennedy said.

"To be here after 200 games, 13 ordinary games at Hawthorn, which my teammates continually remind me about, it's something I'm proud of."