Jack Ziebell has declared his desire to one day be captain of North Melbourne, after Roos president James Brayshaw earmarked him as the club's next leader.

On Monday, Brayshaw anointed Ziebell, the Roos' vice-captain, as Andrew Swallow's successor.

"I don't know when the time will be, but there's no doubt he'll be captain of the club," Brayshaw said on Triple M radio.

Ziebell responded to his president's comments on Wednesday, telling reporters he would be thrilled to captain the club.

"It would be unbelievable to be captain," the 24-year-old said.

"But at the same time, it's something I can't control. I have to make sure I can control the things I can control, like my performance and that's something I need to keep working on."

Meanwhile, North has a chance for preliminary final redemption when it hosts the Sydney Swans on Saturday night.

But gaining revenge for the 71-point point September belting isn't the Kangaroos' objective at Etihad Stadium.

It's just to play good footy again.

In a 5-5 start to the year, North has been shown up by some of the competition’s powerhouses - top eight sides Adelaide, Hawthorn and Fremantle have dished out 10-goal beltings to the Kangaroos.

But after Sunday's gutsy 10-point win over the high-flying Eagles, Ziebell said North had a platform to rebuild its season - and reputation.

"It's a massive game for us against one of the contenders," Ziebell said.

"Our track record from the start of the season hasn't been great against the top sides.

"We're really keen to get out there and have a real dip against a quality opponent."

Ziebell conceded respect for the club had dipped since last year's finals series, when it knocked out Geelong and Essendon.

While Saturday night is the first time the Kangaroos have faced the Swans since their finals loss, Ziebell said it wasn't being overblown internally.

"It's just another game, but we did get our pants pulled down by Sydney in the prelim," he said.

"It's definitely in the back of your mind but the two teams are a lot different with personnel."

Chief among those changes is coach Brad Scott's departure to the couch while he recovers from back surgery.

Scott is recovering well from the operation and was leaving all things coaching to caretaker boss Darren Crocker this week.