Shakes Mashaba looked a man cracking under the pressure with yet another incoherent ramble against media criticism after Bafana Bafana's 1-0 victory against Senegal in the Nelson Mandela Challenge on Tuesday.

Mashaba missed a trick by, rather than putting a positive spin on an impressive victory against a strong, 38th-ranked Senegal at Orlando Stadium, dwelling on the negative and continuing to be defensive in the face of criticism.

An emotional Mashaba lashed out at criticism of an embarrassing 3-1 away defeat against Mauritania by an ill-prepared Bafana on Saturday that has left South Africa with a very slim hope of qualifying for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations. The coach said it had been difficult lifting his players' spirits.

"And you know the reason," he said. "It's not about losing a game, but what is being said after losing.

"For the first time in my life I listened to all the radio stations, [read all] newspapers, [watched] television - not a single one was positive."

He appears to have largely abandoned the youth policy that brought an energy to his team and won him support and praise in qualifying for this year's Afcon in Equatorial Guinea unbeaten, dumping defending champions Nigeria out of the qualifiers in the process.

The coach was unable to properly explain how Vision 2022 is progressing. "I wouldn't answer that one. It will be like giving our plan away . We are about to achieve our vision to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations, as well as the 2018 World Cup," he said.

Bizarrely, Mashaba's son Jabu found his way into the press conference and was somehow allowed to ask a three-part question that included questioning the national pride of the journalists in the room.