England opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements from captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".
Stokes made those words in several conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes series versus Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, the captain noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" within the squad.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I required," remarked Stokes.
But, following the opener scored 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation after his side were beaten in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The team subsequently went on a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Prior to this match, Stokes said his team had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had remained consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this game."
The Hosts Close of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – left England 207-6 chasing a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, Australia need just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead after three matches played.
Defeat will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only 11 days of play – with England fell the initial matches in two and four days each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," said Crawley. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a very, very good side. It was inevitably tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and they've proven why."
Pope's Place In Question
While Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers doubts about his immediate future in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, adding to his modest returns against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
But, Crawley insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There's no chat like that on Ollie in the camp," he concluded.
