Three thoughts on United States-Australia tuneup result

There was some good, some bad and some uncertain to take from Saturday’s 3-1 win over Australia. My complete game grades are here at SI.com. Meanwhile, here are three thoughts on final U.S. tune-up:

The Onyewu matter: I suppose everyone will just have to trust Bob Bradley on the Oguchi Onyewu issue. On the one hand, it seems nearly inconceivable to me that a player who hasn’t gone 90 in nine months can line up and try to deal with Wayne Rooney while carrying the weight of a World Cup. But I guess that’s exactly what will happen.

Jay DeMerit struggled Saturday, so at this point he may not even be a better option. How much of DeMerit’s bad day at the office the produce of a flaky ball and the beleaguered turf? Good question. But I know this: all those fouls in prickly spots can’t be blamed on balls and grass. Meanwhile, the communication and linking just doesn’t look great between DeMerit and Clarence Goodson. If a fellow named Josh Kennedy (Yes, that Josh Kennedy!) can ghost into scoring positions relatively unhindered, what in the name of Sir Bobby Charlton will Wayne Rooney do in there? If the marking isn’t better, he’ll launch a massive assault on the Golden Boot right there in Rustenburg in a week’s time.

Better fullback play: On the other hand, Steve Cherundolo and Carlos Bocanegra are making the flanks a relatively safe place. Now, granted, this was Australia, and better is to come. Still, the pair’s veteran leadership is showing. Bocanegra wasn’t very adventurous, but that’s OK. If Bradley wanted adventuresome, he knows where to find Jonathan Bornstein. On the other side, Cherundolo knows just when to scoot forward and when to play it safe. And when he does get forward, he can certainly deliver a telling cross, as his classic far-post centering pass to Edson Buddle reminded us.

(Truly, last summer as U.S. backers were calling for Jonathan Spector over Cherundolo, I just didn’t see it. Just because someone plays for and English Premier League club, that doesn’t automatically make him better than someone in another league. Cherundolo’s resume is pretty salty, too.)

The rising forwards: This precocious trio of national team newbies Edson Buddle, Robbie Findley and Herculez Gomez, may be the story of the World Cup run-up in the U.S. camp.

Something good can be said about all three on Saturday. Buddle’s two goals speak for themselves. Findley has to finish his chances, but his hold-up play was OK, his work off the ball is improving and he’s getting into scoring positions. Gomez made the most of his short shift, again showing a striker’s instinct that you can’t teach.

Perhaps most importantly, the cupboard doesn’t seem as bare now in Jozy Altidore’s absence, does it? The HullCity man may be OK for next Saturday or perhaps a little later in the first round. But if he’s not, Buddle, Findley and Gomez don’t seem to represent a stark dropoff, do they?