England opener Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments from captain Stokes about the dressing room not being "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several interviews following his team's defeat in the second Ashes series against the Australians earlier this month.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his message to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions over the past two days that I needed to have done," said the England leader.
However, after the opener scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in the third Test, he stated: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take anything stated in the press with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Steady Philosophy
The captain made the "weak men" comment subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The team afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Before this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" conversations and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed in line with their previous three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "It's on maintaining positivity, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special entering this game."
Australia On the Verge of Historic Series Victory
Crawley's wicket late on Saturday was part of a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England six down for 207 chasing a notional total of 435.
This means, the home team require four wickets on the final day to move to an insurmountable 3-0 advantage with three matches played.
A loss will extend England's winless run in this country to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight away Ashes series loss.
The current battle is set to be decided in just eleven days of cricket – with England losing the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," admitted the batsman. "We came here to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. They're a very, very good team. It was inevitably hard coming here to face them. They were the front-runners and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While the opener's innings in the third Test likely secures questions about his short-term place in the side, Pope appears under threat for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, extending his modest returns versus the old enemy.
Across 16 Ashes innings, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in the Ashes and recorded a lower average.
But, Crawley insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a productive year to be frank."
"He has played some really good knocks. This is talk externally. There is no discussion of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
