England opener Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of comments made by skipper Stokes about the team environment as no place for "weak men".
Stokes made those words in several conversations in the wake of his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes series versus the Australians previously.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at defeat at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions over the past two days that I required," said the England leader.
But, after Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. We take everything that is said in the media with some skepticism," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "fragile individuals" observation subsequent to his side were beaten in Brisbane to fall two matches behind.
The team subsequently took a holiday to Noosa between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he said his players had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley stated the messaging from the captain and head coach McCullum had remained in line with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, the same as always," noted the opener. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we could do something special going into this game."
Australia On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's wicket late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting total of 435.
This means, Australia require just four more wickets on the last day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
Defeat will extend England's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in just 11 days of play – after England fell the first two Tests in rapid time each.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been decided more swiftly. The hosts have also won in eleven days on two other occasions in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we will definitely view it with that mindset," he continued.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a very, very good side. It was always going to be hard touring here against them. They were the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his spot in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his poor record against Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a half-century and averages 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman in over a century – Amiss – has featured as many times in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley insisted any suggestion his teammate is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – referring to the press – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added he. "He has had a productive year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. It is noise from the outside. There's no chat of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," he concluded.
