Sydney won't waste time worrying about a hypothetical AFL grand final hangover, Joel Amartey says.

While there are lessons to be learnt from their ugly 60-point loss to Brisbane, key forward Amartey insists there is no mental scarring affecting the Swans as they prepare for their 2025 campaign.

It won't be the first time Sydney will attempt to bounce back from a nightmare defeat in September.

After an 81-point thrashing by Geelong in the 2022 grand final, the Swans rallied late in the following season to make the first week of finals while Chris Scott's Cats slumped to a 12th-place finish.

As they aim to build a case for a chance at redemption, new Swans coach Dean Cox and his side will only have to look to the reigning premiers.

The Lions were narrowly beaten out for the 2023 flag by Collingwood, before overcoming a spate of early-season injuries and a poor start to pull off a fairytale premiership success last year.

The Magpies and the Cats joined the Western Bulldogs (2016) and Richmond (2020) as sides who failed to make the top eight following their premiership season in recent years.

Whether Sydney imitate Brisbane or tread down the same path as Collingwood is something Amartey says his side have not dwelt on.

"It hasn't really been brought up, besides the first meeting we had at the start of the preseason where we went through the grand final," Amartey told AAP.

"Other than that, our pre-season has all been focused on this year and the two per cent that we can get better at.

"It takes a while to wrap your head around (losing a grand final). The day went like a blur for most of us.

"Last year, we did so much right. It was just that last two per cent."

While he did not get on the grand final scoreboard, the 25-year-old refuses to look back on last season with disappointment.

Plagued by injury in his first few seasons since being drafted as a rookie in 2018, Amartey played a career-high 25 matches in 2024 and finished as Sydney's leading goalkicker with 43 majors.

"It was the first time I really played finals, so I don't think it was as much a mental thing," Amartey said.

"Obviously, as a forward, you want to kick goals, but there's a lot more to football than just who has the ball and who kicks the goals.

"It's that contested work, contested marking, tackles, follow-up.

"I haven't missed a session this pre-season - touch wood - and when that's the case, it usually leads to a good start."

So laser-focused are the Swans under Cox, they haven't yet thought about their opening round SCG fixture on March 7 against Hawthorn.

Sydney have their sights first on a practice match with cross-city rivals GWS, before their official pre-season clash against Gold Coast on February 28.

"We know where opening round is, when it is, but there's a lot of water to go under the bridge before then," Amartey said.