Jeparit-Rainbow president Jason Hutson said in the current football landscape, it could be difficult to know where clubs stood with players as they weighed up their options.

"A lot of blokes don't want to commit too early because they might be waiting on money or an offer from somewhere else, so it's getting harder to attract blokes early in the piece," Mr Hutson said.

"It is a bit of a concern. We're only six weeks away from round one.

"It's hard, too, because if you're waiting on two or three blokes, you might be focused on them instead of talking to another two or three you might be able to get. 

"If you get guys to commit straight away, it's a lot easier to get things done and get yourselves in a good position."

Mr Hutson said it seemed less players from outside the region were joining the District league for the coming season.

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"It's getting harder to attract players - that's probably the issue," Mr Hutson said.

"It feels like it's getting harder for everyone. Stawell has recruited not too bad this year but it seems like it's getting tougher for us smaller clubs. 

"Most of the signings I've seen in the District league seem to have been blokes who already have a connection with the club, not big names from Melbourne or Adelaide like we have seen in previous years."

Laharum coach Robbie Miller said signing players early made it easier to prepare for the season.

"It can be hard to plan ahead when you're not sure about a few guys (and) whether they are coming or going," Miller said.

"Some guys might see it like it's just country footy and you can go wherever; but as a coach you need guys to be committing so you can move forward.

"Then you can start looking more toward the game plan and strategy. You need time to get used to each other as well."

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AFL Wimmera-Mallee's Stephen McQueen said late signings were a common occurrence, and there were always last-minute clearances on the eve of the season.

He said the process to get players cleared could take time and could result in players missing out on round one if they were left too late.

"The Friday night before the first game there are normally a lot of phone calls and a lot of favours asked," Mr McQueen said. "You might have a situation where other clubs haven't looked at the clearance requests.

"If they're not through, I can't let them play - there's no grey area with that one. So the earlier the better."