The South Whidbey Youth Football League is making a last-ditch pitch for more players.

It’s the first time in two years where South Whidbey has tried to put three teams on the field. But not enough players have signed up; only the Islanders Pee Wee team has a stout roster. The Pee Wee players are 7 and 8 years old.

The two teams with older players, however, need more kids.

“We originally had 20 people sign up. But we had some move up and down because of their age or weight,” said Midget Islanders Coach John McCreless.

The team is made up of 9 and 10 year olds.

“We have 16 now,” he said.

That’s not enough to cancel the season, McCreless said. But it’s not enough to be truly competitive with other teams in the North Cascades League.

Teams have to field 11 players. But 22 players on the roster is the ideal number to start with, because it means enough kids for both an offensive and defensive squad.

Mike Denka, coach of the team for 11 and 12 year olds, said he hopes other players will sign up during the last call.

“We can use 25 or 30 (total players),” he said.

“We have 17 right now,” Denka said, adding that getting 10 or more new players to sign up isn’t realistic.

“If we can get two or three more, then that would work. That would be fantastic,” he said.

“We’re having a really good year, and a good turnout. To be competitive, it would be nice to get some more kids,” Denka added.

Parents of players who want to sign up can call the South Whidbey Youth Football Association at 579-1789.

The teams play games every Saturday for seven weeks this summer, not including the Labor Day weekend.

The football season kicks off with a jamboree on Aug. 20 in Burlington. Forty teams are expected to play at the jamboree.

Schedules for the Islanders teams will be set after the jamboree.