The English opening batter Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by skipper Ben Stokes about the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in several interviews following his team's defeat in the second Ashes against the Australians previously.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face a series loss with a match to spare, the captain stated he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
But, following Crawley made a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take anything stated in the media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" observation after England were beaten in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The team subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, Stokes revealed his players had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley stated the messaging from Stokes and coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their prior three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable three-nil advantage after three Tests.
A loss will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of play – with England fell the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it like that," he continued.
"It's been tough. They're a formidable side. It was inevitably tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
Although Crawley's innings in Adelaide likely secures questions about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second knock on Saturday, extending his poor record against the old enemy.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
However, Crawley said any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is talk externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.
