England opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements from captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
Stokes made those words in several interviews in the wake of his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England now face defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said Stokes.
However, after the opener scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the press with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "fragile individuals" comment after England suffered a loss in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The team subsequently went on a break to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman stated the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous three years in charge.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Series Victory
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday came during a crucial triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left the chasing side six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on the final day to move to an unassailable 3-0 lead after three Tests.
Defeat will extend the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series loss.
This series is set to be decided in just eleven days of cricket – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disheartening," admitted Crawley. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will definitely view it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was always going to be hard coming here against them. They were the front-runners and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term place in the side, Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
However, the opener insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," added Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise from the outside. There's no discussion of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley finished.
