The English opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by captain Ben Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
Stokes delivered those words in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second Ashes series against Australia earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat with a match to spare, Stokes noted he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the squad.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, following Crawley made a knock of 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The England squad subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third matches.
Prior to this match, Stokes said his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain alive in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior tenure in leadership.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Stokes himself – left England 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435.
This means, the home team need four wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three Tests.
A loss would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
This series will be completed in just eleven days of play – with England fell the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are facing elimination now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably tough touring here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position In Question
Although the opener's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his immediate place in the England team, Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 in England's second knock on day four, extending his poor record against Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a half-century and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
However, the opener said any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is noise externally. There's no discussion of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley finished.
