England opener Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments made by skipper Ben Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's defeat in the second Ashes versus the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at defeat with a match to spare, the captain stated he had let his message to "drift around" within the squad.
"I've done the necessary discussions 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. We take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain issued his "fragile individuals" observation after his side were beaten in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The team afterwards went on a break to Noosa between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, he revealed his players had held "honest" conversations and he had urged them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their prior three years in leadership.
"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. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat going into this Test."
Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australia off-spinner Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 chasing a notional total of 435 runs.
This means, the home team require just four more wickets on Sunday's last day to move to an insurmountable three-nil advantage with three matches played.
A loss would prolong the English team's winless run in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes loss.
This series will be completed in just 11 days of play – with England losing the first two Tests in two and four days each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the modern era.
"It's disheartening," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're facing elimination at this point."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. Australia is a very, very good 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 Position In Question
While the opener's performance in the third Test probably answers questions about his immediate place in the side, Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second knock on day four, extending his modest returns versus Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
But, the opener said any suggestion Pope is under the microscope comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware how good of a player he is," said Crawley. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There is no discussion of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
