England opening batter Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments from skipper Stokes about the dressing room as no place for "weak men".
Stokes made those words in multiple interviews in the wake of 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 defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain noted he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I have completed all the talking over the past two days that I needed to have done," remarked Stokes.
But, after the opener made 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 media with a pinch of salt," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to his side were beaten in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The England squad subsequently went on a break to a Queensland resort between the second and the upcoming Tests.
Before this match, he revealed his players had held "honest" talks and he had urged them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to remain in contention in the Ashes battle.
Yet, the Kent batsman asserted the guidance from the captain and head coach McCullum had stayed consistent with their previous tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been very positive, unchanged," said the opener. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. It felt like we could do something special entering this Test."
Australia Close of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal late on Saturday came during a crucial three-wicket burst by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side 207-6 chasing a daunting target of 435.
This means, the home team need four wickets on the final day to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead with three matches played.
Defeat will extend England's drought in Australia to 18 Tests and condemn them to a fourth straight overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in only eleven days of play – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time each.
Not since 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other occasions in the modern era.
"This is disappointing," said the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been tough. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably hard touring here to face them. They entered as the favourites and have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Position Under Scrutiny
While the opener's performance in the third Test likely secures doubts about his short-term future in the side, Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test starting December 26th.
Pope fell for 17 runs in the team's second innings on day four, extending his modest returns against Australia.
In 16 Ashes innings, Pope has failed to score a half-century and boasts an average of just 17.62.
Only one other English batsman since 1900 – Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top order in Ashes Tests and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised originates with "you guys" – meaning 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 played several excellent innings. It is talk externally. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
