JARRAD McVeigh has taken a huge step in his recovery from off-season knee surgery, running for the first time this week.

After an off-season dedicated to the exercise bike and the gym, the Sydney Swans' co-captain has finally been able to stretch his legs. 

Aside from overseeing a few sessions, McVeigh has been largely absent from Swans' sessions until this week.

The Swans' football manager Tom Harley said McVeigh’s path back to full fitness was going to be slow and steady.

"Step one is to get the rehab right and the strength right, then you move into running for fitness, then obviously progress into game intensity drills," Harley told the club's website.

"Jarrad’s still got a few more boxes to tick at this stage, but he’s the captain of the club and he does everything right all the time."

McVeigh’s rehab partner for most of the off-season has been Ben McGlynn, who was restricted to just nine games last year with a series of calf and hamstring complaints.

"Ben is still a little way from running, but speaking to him he’s really comfortable with the way things are progressing,” Harley said.