THE SYDNEY Swans are hopeful Shane Mumford will slot back into the side to face Carlton this week and make up for the loss of young key forward Sam Reid.

Reid sustained a partial tear of his medial ligament in the first quarter of Saturday night's win over Gold Coast and is expected to miss two to three weeks.

But Mumford should return from one week out with bone bruising when the Swans attempt to secure a ninth straight victory against the Blues at Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

"Reid is an important part of it, but we're hopeful Shane Mumford will come back into the team this week," coach John Longmire told reporters on Monday.

"If he does, we've still got some height in our forward line, which we think has been really important for us over the last couple of months.

"If 'Mummy' trains the rest of the week and pulls up well, obviously he'll come straight back into the team.

"Before his injury he was starting to hit some really good form. Hopefully he only misses the one week and picks up that form straight away."

Longmire said Adam Goodes will have a quiet start to the week after his corked thigh, but expects him to train fully on Friday and play against Carlton.

The Swans have managed to produce an AFL-best 14-3 record despite losing the likes of Mumford, Goodes, Luke Parker and Lewis Roberts-Thomson to injuries at different times during the year.

With centre half-forward Reid now to sit out for at least two weeks, Longmire says it is simply something clubs must confront.

"Every team has to cope with players at different times that aren't in the team," he said.

"You look at Hawthorn without [Lance] Franklin on the weekend and they certainly played well.

"Collingwood were missing a number of players on the weekend and we've had our moments missing some key players.

"You just have to adjust and move on."

Longmire expects to face a "fierce" and "desperate" Carlton side this weekend that sits in 11th position and is fighting for its finals hopes.

But he isn't overly concerned whether his own side is garnering enough respect for the way it has performed this season.

"It doesn't bother me to be honest," he said.

"We just go about our business up here in Sydney and quite like it that way and hopefully it continues that way for the rest of the year.

"I think we're getting some recognition, which is good, but we don’t go seeking it, we just keep working hard.

"Form can change very quickly."

James Dampney covers Sydney AFL news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_JD