The English opening batter Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements made by skipper Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "weak men".
Stokes made this message in multiple conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes against the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the third Test, where the visitors now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had allowed his message to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," remarked the England leader.
However, following Crawley scored 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 anything stated in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to his side were beaten in the second Test to fall two matches behind.
The team subsequently went on a holiday to Noosa in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from Stokes and coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous three years in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we could do something special going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket on day four came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Harry Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England 207-6 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's last day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead after three Tests.
Defeat would prolong England's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive away Ashes series loss.
This series will be completed in only eleven days of play – after England losing the first two Tests in two and four days respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia sealed victory in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a formidable team. It was inevitably tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place In Question
While the opener's performance in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his immediate future in the England team, Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in England's second innings on day four, extending his poor record against Australia.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, the Surrey man has never made a fifty and boasts an average of just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured as many times in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a poorer average.
However, the opener said any suggestion his teammate is under the microscope originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year to be frank."
"He has produced some really good knocks. It is noise from the outside. There is no discussion like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
