Andrew Swallow is confident he’ll play a part in North’s NAB Challenge campaign next month.

The captain underwent surgery on both knees in the off-season and joined the main group in a limited capacity this week.

“I can probably start doing a fair bit of running with the boys, still probably not going 100 per cent, but just trying to get through the volume at the moment and do some of the lighter skills,” Swallow told NMFC.com.au.

“The aim is to be back doing the main training in one or two weeks.”

Swallow has undergone a diligent rehabilitation process, doing everything he can to get himself ready to play “one, maybe two” of the Roos’ pre-season matches.

“You probably end up doing longer days than the other boys. I do a fair bit of conditioning; so bikes, swims and boxing. You are trying to work as much as you can on your conditioning while you are not out there doing the running.

“The majority of my time is spent on my leg strength and just trying to build my quads back up.

“I found after my surgery that they (quadriceps) wasted away pretty quickly, so I’m trying to build that back up and aim to be stronger than they were before the surgeries.”

While Swallow admits his time on the sidelines has been frustrating, he said it has allowed him some valuable time to observe his teammates on the track.

“It’s good to see some guys really take charge of the group; Jamie Macmillan, Jack Ziebell and Shaun Higgins have been outstanding and have been really driving the group,” he said.

“They’re the guys who are going to really push it forward, and it’s nice you’ve still got the old-timers like Drew Petrie, Brent Harvey and Nick Dal Santo all still out there running around, who can still add bits and pieces when they need to, but they’re just there to support the other boys.”

Swallow said he's counting down the days to when he'll be fully fit.

“I’m sick of doing rehab, coming in and doing the extra cross-training when everyone gets to go home,” Swallow added.

“I’m not too far away, so that’s exciting. Hopefully, fingers-crossed, I’ll be able to stay injury free.

“It’s just good to get out there with the group. You miss just being around the boys and having a bit of banter and enjoying their company.”