Seth Lawson Burkett is an English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 professional footballer who currently plays as a left back

Defender (association football)

Within the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....

 in Brazil for Sorriso, a team in the Fifth Division of the Brazilian football league system

Brazilian football league system

The Brazilian football league system is a series of interconnected leagues for football clubs in Brazil. It consists of several independent pyramids, which are the national pyramid, and the state pyramids. As those pyramids are independent, clubs usually compete in both pyramids in the same year...

. As of 2010, Burkett is the only British footballer playing professionally in Brazil.

Early and personal life

Seth Lawson Burkett was born in Peterborough

Peterborough

Peterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of in June 2007. For ceremonial purposes it is in the county of Cambridgeshire. Situated north of London, the city stands on the River Nene which flows into the North Sea...

, Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...

 in April 1991, and grew up in nearby Barnack, also in Cambridgeshire. Despite this, he is described as coming from the neighbouring county of Lincolnshire

Lincolnshire

Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...

.

Burkett is related to the former professional footballer Charlie Williams

Charlie Williams (footballer)

Charles Albert "Charlie" Williams was an English football goalkeeper and manager, who was the first goalkeeper known to have scored a goal in a first-class match.- Playing career :...

, who was also active in Brazil, as a manager with Fluminense

Fluminense Football Club

Fluminense Football Club is a sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Founded in the beginning of the 20th century as a single-sport institution, Fluminense is today an umbrella organization for several teams in more than 16 different sport activities. The most popular endeavor of Fluminense,...

 and Corinthians

Sport Club Corinthians Paulista

Sport Club Corinthians Paulista, commonly just known as Corinthians , is a Brazilian football club based in the city of São Paulo. They play in the São Paulo state league, as well as the Brasileirão, Brazil's top national league...

. Williams has been described in the media as both Burkett's grandfather, and his great-grand-uncle.

Career

Burkett began his football career with the youth team of hometown club Peterborough United

Peterborough United F.C.

Peterborough United Football Club are a professional English football club based in Peterborough. Peterborough United formed in 1934 and played in the old Midland League, which they won six times; eventually being admitted to the Football League in 1960, replacing Gateshead. Their home ground is...

, before later rejecting a contract offer from non-League team Kettering Town

Kettering Town F.C.

Kettering Town Football Club are a football club originating in Kettering, Northamptonshire but currently based in the nearby village of Irthlingborough. The club play in the Conference National after winning the Conference North in 2007–08...

 in order to continue his school studies at A-Level

GCE Advanced Level

The Advanced Level General Certificate of Education, commonly referred to as an A-level, is a qualification offered by education institutions in England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Cameroon, and the Cayman Islands...

. After leaving the Peterborough youth system, Burkett became Captain of the Stamford youth team, and he later made 12 appearances for Stamford's senior team after making his debut in September 2008. Burkett also spent time on loan at March Town United

March Town United F.C.

March Town United F.C. are an English football club based in March, Cambridgeshire. The club are currently members of Eastern Counties League Division One and play at the GER Sports Ground.-History:...

 during the first few games of the 2009-10 season.

In June 2009, while on a tour of Brazil with the Stamford youth team, Burkett was spotted by a local football agent called Anderson da Silva. He signed for fifth division team Sorriso, and made his debut in November 2009. Burkett attracted considerable media attention in Brazil in early 2010 following a Cup game against Palmeiras

Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras

Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras is a Brazilian football club from São Paulo. The club was founded on August 26, 1914, as Palestra Italia but changed to the current name on September 14, 1942...

, in a game which Sorriso lost 0-4. In May 2010, Burkett began contract negotiations with another Brazilian club side, Taboão.