England opener Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements made by skipper Ben Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "weak men".
Stokes made those words in multiple conversations following England's loss in the second Ashes against Australia previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his message to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
However, after Crawley made 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with some skepticism," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
Stokes made the "weak men" comment subsequent to his side were beaten in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The team afterwards went on a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to this match, he said his players had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their battle to remain in contention in the series.
Yet, Crawley stated the guidance from Stokes and coach McCullum had remained in line with their previous three years in charge.
"It's been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we could do something special going into this Test."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require four wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead after three matches played.
A loss will extend England's winless run in Australia to 18 Tests and ensure a fourth successive away Ashes loss.
This series is set to be decided in just 11 days of play – with England fell the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"This is disheartening," said Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They were the favourites coming in to it they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
While Crawley's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
Pope was out for 17 in England's second innings on Saturday, extending his poor record versus the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
But, the opener said any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – referring to the journalists – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is talk externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.
