He made thirty-nine representative appearances for the Australian national team in Tests, World Cup and New South Wales State of Origin matches between 1985 and 1991.
Roach and Sironen were replaced by coach Warren Ryan late in the 2nd half and when the game ultimately went into extra time they were unable to return and with their strikepower gone in the added period Canberra were able to overpower Balmain 19–14.
In a Test match against New Zealand in Melbourne in 1991, Roach clashed famously with Kiwi forward Dean Lonergan and required 20 stitches.
[4] Blocker was dropped after the Australian's shock 24–8 loss to NZ in the Melbourne test but was chosen for the end of season tour of Papua New Guinea..
After a disagreement with fellow Channel 9 commentators Paul Vautin and Peter Sterling he was sacked by the network and signed by the official rugby league radio broadcaster 2UE, before later moving to 2GB with Ray Hadley and his Continuous Call Team.
[citation needed] On 23 June 2000, Roach was awarded the Australian Sports Medal for his contribution to Australia's international standing in rugby league.
In 2018, Roach revealed that his nickname 'Blocker' actually came from his time employed as a Licensed Plumber where it was remarked by his colleagues that he would 'block' pipes that would subsequently require plumbing works to be conducted.