 Of Italian descent, Rocca is the younger brother of former Australian rules footballer and NFL punter Saverio Rocca.Known as a family man, Anthony was rated very highly as a youngster and was selected with the second overall pick in the 1994 AFL Draft by the Sydney Swans.A lifelong Collingwood Magpies supporter (hailing from the Reservoir area, an area in the Collingwood supporter base's heartland), Rocca has said in recent interviews that at the time he was at Sydney his heart was not completely in it and he was homesick.