Amajita managed a 1-1 draw in the first leg on Saturday at the Stade Omnisports Ahmadou Ahidjo in Yaounde, Cameroon.
Eteme Adamou opened the scoring in the 46th minute, but Siyanda Ngubo equalised just past the hour-mark to give the South Africans a crucial away goal.
“It was a tough game as expected,” Mashaba says. “They were strong in the first 10 minutes, but we should have scored after that as we had two clear chances.
“Their goal was also a soft one, which means there are still some things we need to work on to ensure we do well in the second leg. But our boys did very well to come back with a draw.”
Mashaba adds: “The score line is now 50-50, which means we have to score first and deny them a chance to get a goal. If they score and we come back then it’s back to square one.
“The result favours us if we get more goals, but I must admit it takes the pressure off us a bit. We have one foot in and we now need to work harder to get the other foot in.
“But there is also the pressure of playing at home where everybody expects us to win and the boys might be unsettled, so we know that it will not be easy.
“It is also important to note that it has been some time since our national teams put smiles on the faces of the people, and I believe this is the right time to do that. We say to them come in numbers to cheer these boys to give them some boost and make our lives easier so that we can qualify for the AYC.”