Roberts played for non-League amateur sides Marine, Orrell, Blundellsands, and Northern Nomads, before signing with professional club Southport.
[1] Roberts signed with First Division giants Liverpool in May 1933 and made his debut on 4 September 1933, in a 1–1 draw with Stoke City at the Victoria Ground.
[3] This was his only appearance of the "Reds" highly disappointing 1933–34 campaign – which saw Liverpool narrowly avoiding the relegation zone – and he departed Anfield for Cheshire League side Wigan Athletic in June 1934.
[5] His arrival proved to have come too late, however, and the "Valiants" failed to escape the relegation zone, finishing one point behind Barnsley in 20th place.
[5] Roberts nevertheless proved himself to be a forward of some promise, scoring a hat-trick past Hull City in a 4–0 win at The Old Recreation Ground on 2 March, and also finding the net twice at Vetch Field and once at St James' Park.
[5] Cresswell instead favoured a forward partnership of Tom Nolan and Tommy Ward, and also tried Syd Goodfellow in the number ten role.
[5] Roberts scored only ten goals in 21 games, having been forced to miss much of the season after dislocating his shoulder in a 4–0 win over Bristol City on New Year's Eve.
[3] He managed to escape from an Italian prisoner-of-war camp in November 1943, walking 400 miles (640 km) to freedom with a broken neck.