England opening batter Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Stokes about the dressing room not being "weak men".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple conversations in the wake of England's defeat in the second match of the Ashes versus the Australians previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where the visitors are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes noted he had allowed his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I required," remarked the England leader.
But, following the opener made 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 press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "weak men" comment subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Before this match, he revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their battle to remain alive in the series.
Yet, Crawley asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their prior three years in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. We believed we could do an extraordinary feat entering this game."
The Hosts Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Stokes himself – meant England 207-6 in pursuit of a notional total of 435.
This means, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead after three matches played.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of cricket – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed victory in England in eight days, has the destination of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," admitted the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," he continued.
"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably tough touring here against them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although the opener's performance in the third Test probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his position in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope was out for 17 runs in England's second knock on day four, extending his poor record against the old enemy.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and recorded a poorer average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion Pope is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," said he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," he finished.
