The bogey boot is on the other foot this week, but Sydney AFL coach Paul Roos remains extremely wary of the struggling Richmond side his team will face in their SCG season debut on Saturday.

The Swans broke a couple of their longest standing hoodoos on Sunday when they scored their first win in seven games against the Crows and their first against them in Adelaide for nine years.

Roos described Sydney's performance in their 43-point victory over the Crows as one of the team's best wins in recent years."

Ironically, Richmond will travel to the SCG having endured a similarly fallow run against the Swans as Sydney had against Adelaide.

The Tigers have lost their last seven against Sydney, including their last four at the SCG where they haven't won for six years.

Richmond sit last on the ladder after conceding 120 points in each of their first two games.

However, Roos pointed to Melbourne's near-upset of Collingwood last Saturday as evidence why the Swans shouldn't underestimate the youthful Tigers.

"Young players are normally enthusiastic and if they get on a bit of a roll, anything can happen, we saw that with Melbourne against Collingwood at the weekend," Roos told reporters on Monday.

"Once they get confidence and they get up and go they are pretty hard to stop, so I think the start is going to be really really critical.

"If they kick some early goals they will get some momentum as Melbourne did against Collingwood.

"I've been around footy too long to fall into that trap and hopefully our players have as well."

Roos was keen for Sydney to build on their promising early performances against Adelaide and their season opener the week before where they lost by just eight points to premiership heavy weights St Kilda.

He was pleased by the way his veterans, youngsters and recruits from other clubs were blending, but stressed there was still plenty of improvement.

He said he believed his new look lineup had benefited from the longer pre-season the club had as a consequence of missing last year's finals.

"It's probably been a little surprising how well we've been playing over the last couple of weeks, it's early days, but hopefully that will continue."

He wasn't totally surprised by the five-goal effort of recruit Ben McGlynn against the Crows.

"That's the type of game we thought he would be able to play because he's very fit, he's quick. We didn't think he would get that free that often and to kick five goals was a super effort," said Roos.

Roos said people had to be careful in describing the likes of McGlynn and his former Hawthorn team mate Josh Kennedy and ex-West Coast ruckman Mark Seaby as recycled, stressing each of them had still been required players at their previous club.

He agreed former forward Ryan O'Keefe now belonged among the elite midfielders in the competition after another dynamic team possession leading performance and three goals against Adelaide.

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