Green’s Dictionary of Slang

a body-blow, especially one to the ribs.

1846		Hilpert & Karcher Dict. of the English and German 2:2 264/1: He gave him a blow in the ribs [low] he gave him a rib- roaster.
1851		Bell’s Life in Sydney 31 May 1/6: Massey [...] got home a rib roaster.
1854		‘Cuthbert Bede’ Adventures of Mr Verdant Green (1982) II 166: There’s a regular rib-roaster for you!
1860		Star (Ballarat, Vic.) 14 June 4/2: Tom has been taken off his pins with ‘rib-roasters’ and ‘jaw-breakers’ before now.
1867		Bell’s Life in Sydney 2 Mar. 5/1: Some rattling deliveries [...] Probert sending home a rib-roaster.
1889		Times-Democrat (New Orleans, LA) 9 July 3/6: Prize Ring Slang [...] Reporters [...] who understood the unaccustomed spectacle so little that they wrote of ‘smellers’ as ‘awful blows’ and ‘rib-roasters’ as ‘tremedous thwacks’.
1889		S. Bourke & Mornington Jrnl (Richmond, Vic.) 4 Dec. 2s/4: A new era of culture has dawned upon the Hub — the culture of muscle, of eye-closers and nose smashers [...] and rib-roasters.
1899		‘Pot’ & ‘Swears’ Scarlet City 40: Josh made a desperate endeavour [...] to get home some of his rib roasters.
1906		Queenslander (Brisbane) 14 Apr. 44/4: He gave him a succession of ‘rib-roasters’ that made the man howl for mercy.
1936		Townsville Daily Bull. (Qld) 1 Aug. 7/3: Schemeling’s [...] right side was absorbing some fearful rib-roasters.
1952		Townsville Daily Bull. (Qld) 5 Mar. 4/5: Through the first round [...] I landed a few rib-roasters rib-roasters.