DANE Rampe has only heard one senior coaching voice in his 224 AFL games, so when he runs out on Thursday night against the Western Bulldogs in John Longmire's 300th game in charge of Sydney, he will do so with unashamed emotion.

The 33-year-old has been a warrior for Longmire across his 13 years in charge and after being plucked from relative footy obscurity in 2013 and progressing to become an All-Australian, best-and-fairest winner and now co-captain – all under Longmire's watch – the connection with the man they call 'Horse' is profound.

"I absolutely want to get the win for him and acknowledge and help him celebrate what is an incredible achievement," Rampe told AFL.com.au.

"I think one of his great strengths as a coach is the connection and the relationship that he has with his players. And that's been evident from when I walked in the door. He's not just a coach, he's a mentor, he's a friend. 

"So, you definitely feel a sense of achievement for him, and I want to put on a really good quality performance for him as well."

Longmire's longevity in the game has added to a remarkable run of stability at the Swans that has seen only three head coaches in Rodney Eade, Paul Roos and the incumbent, lead the club across the last 27 years.

But even with that in mind, Longmire's run that has accrued 10 finals finishes in his 12 completed seasons, a premiership and three more Grand Final appearances, isn't lost on those who live within those stable Swans walls.  

"If you look at the way the landscape is, it's an incredible testament to who he is and how good he is, really, to show that sort of durability and longevity in the game, because it's not made for it anymore," Rampe said.

So how has he done it?

The Longmire leadership and aura is clearly evident to those on the outside and while those on the inside have long remarked about his connection to his players, it is his adaptability to the constant challenges in the AFL that Rampe believes has been the key reason to his success.

"The most obvious one being, for me, is how we dealt with the retirements of Kieren Jack, Jarrad McVeigh, Heath Grundy, and then transitioned to a team that missed finals," Rampe said.

"He led us through what was uncharted territory for us, the first time we missed finals in a number of years and without bottoming out, used that as a launching pad to really set ourselves up for a Grand Final appearance last year. 

"So that's what I really have come to respect about him and marvel at, is his ability to adapt, I wouldn't say his coaching style, but just his way of motivating and connecting people and his understanding of the group and what's required, which is probably the art of coaching in a nutshell, isn't it?

"The other one that comes to mind is dealing with some weird times after what happened with Adam Goodes and then Buddy (Lance Franklin) coming on as a big presence that the club probably hadn't had before and just navigating that.

"It's probably not something that gets spoken about a lot, but that's something that I've admired, is how he's always dealt with the human first. Footy comes second really. I think that's a great recipe for success."

This season, however, has been arguably as challenging on-field for Longmire and the Swans as any other.

A myriad of injuries has disrupted hopes, most of them in-game and to key players like the McCartin brothers, Callum Mills and Rampe himself.

Winnable positions in games have been spurned and off the back of a Grand final appearance, just a third season out of the finals under Longmire's reign is looking more likely than not.

But the coach's approach and drive hasn't wavered at a time when the demands of the game have taken their toll on others who have served similar timeframes in the hot seat, drawing further admiration from his players.

"He's been frustrated at times, but, again, optimistic with what we know we can still do," Rampe said.

"His diligence and his work ethic is something that you can't help but notice from the moment you walk in the door. It's quite inspiring, to be honest. He's probably the one that needs to be pulled back a little bit. He probably can overdo it at times.

"What we love and respect about him is that fact that he's in there with you, putting the overalls on and grinding away. It's hard not to be inspired by that."

It's that example from the top that is maintaining the spirit within the Swans camp that they can pull off something of a miracle and surge into September against the odds.

A win against the Bulldogs at the SCG on Thursday night is essential for that to happen.

The Swans will again have some key absentees through injury in Chad Warner, Jake Lloyd and impressive youngster Angus Sheldrick.

But 'Horse's' milestone and the win-or-bust scenario for the finals is fuelling the build-up.

"We're doing something pre-game to mark the occasion, but he'll hate it. He'll bat it away and it won't be a long thing," Rampe said.

"We haven't been going as well as we would've liked but we haven't at any stage felt we've been out of it. I think there's been only one game where we felt like we genuinely couldn't have won it. And I think that's pretty rare for a team to say in 15th.

"If there's mathematically a chance, then we're in it but we're clearly going to have to come out and play a little bit more consistently than we've been playing. We have confidence from what we did in the back end of last year.

"I don't want to spend too much time looking back but they still do provide you an opportunity to reflect and think, 'We have been here before.' And provide you a little bit of a blueprint to how we did it and what worked and where we could go."