CARLTON skipper Chris Judd says he's unsure whether the club's younger players got carried away with the Blues' strong early-season form.

But he said last weekend's narrow loss to Essendon had strengthened his side's resolve to snap a 16-year losing streak in Sydney when they take on the Swans on Saturday afternoon at the SCG.

"We started the season particularly well, especially with such a big victory early and there were a few supporters that were talking back to back premierships. I thought it would be good to just take one at a time," Judd said on Tuesday.

"There were probably some people who got carried away with it; whether we did inside the group, I'm not sure, but certainly we need to bounce back from that and show some of the form that we did in the first couple of weeks."

Judd attributed last weekend's loss to Essendon's good play and the inevitable inconsistency that comes with fielding a young team.

Eight of the 22 Blues who played against the Bombers were aged under 22 and half of those – Mitch Robinson, Sam Jacobs, Aaron Joseph and Jeff Garlett – were playing their debut season.

"We do have an incredibly young list, playing a large number of players in their first year, or in their first year playing AFL footy," Judd said.

"First-year players don't tend to play well every single week; players in their first two or three years don't. Perhaps we got a little bit exposed there, but full credit to Essendon.

"We need to regroup now and I guess it was a bit of a reminder of where we sit in the competition."

When asked if Carlton was a genuine contender for this year's premiership, Judd said he simply didn't know, and wasn't even sure whether it mattered.

"We're going out each week to try and win. Some weeks we're going to fall short, some weeks we'll win," he said.

"I don't know where Carlton's going to finish this year. My guess would be no better than anyone else in the room.

"I know we're working very hard. We've got a clear game plan that everyone understands and we are improving in leaps and bounds. How long it takes to get there, or where we're at in the cycle, I couldn't tell you."

Despite the disappointment of defeat, Judd said the experience of playing a home-and-away game front of more than 70,000 people at the MCG was "magical".

"It's a huge thrill. Essentially, I came back (from West Coast) for reasons outside of footy, but along with that, to be exposed to those sort of games, especially growing up here and having been to those games yourself, it reminds you of why we play footy," he said.

"It's easy to get distracted … but out there, in front of 70 or 80,000, you're reminded of what you're there for."