The English opening batter Crawley suggested he had no knowledge of statements from captain Stokes regarding the team environment as no place for "those lacking fortitude".
The all-rounder made those words in multiple conversations in the wake of his team's defeat in the second match of the Ashes against Australia earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where the visitors now face defeat at the earliest opportunity, the captain stated he had let his message to "drift around" among the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," remarked the England leader.
But, after Crawley scored 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 media with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "weak men" observation subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to go 2-0 down.
The team afterwards went on a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, he said his team had held "raw" talks and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay alive in the series.
Nevertheless, Crawley asserted the guidance from Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum had stayed in line with their previous tenure in charge.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, unchanged," noted Crawley. "It's just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with great liberty. We believed we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this game."
Australia Close of Historic Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive three-wicket burst by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in a short spell – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – left England 207-6 chasing a daunting total of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on Sunday's final day to move to an insurmountable three-nil lead with three Tests.
A loss will extend the English team's drought in Australia to 18 consecutive matches and condemn them to a fourth successive overseas Ashes series loss.
This series is set to be decided in only eleven days of cricket – with England fell the first two Tests in rapid time respectively.
Not since 1921, when Australia completed a series win in the UK in eight days, has the outcome of the urn been determined more swiftly. Australia have also won in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted Crawley. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and now we are staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been difficult. Australia is a formidable side. It was inevitably hard coming here against them. They were the front-runners and have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
Although Crawley's performance in the third Test probably answers questions about his short-term future in the side, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
Pope fell for 17 in the team's second innings on Saturday, extending his modest returns against the old enemy.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a fifty and averages just 17.62.
Only one other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has featured an equal number of innings in the top six in the Ashes and returned a lower average.
But, the opener insisted any suggestion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"The squad is fully aware of his considerable talent," added Crawley. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has played several excellent innings. It is noise from the outside. There's no chat of that nature regarding Pope amongst the players," Crawley finished.
