England opening batter Zak Crawley suggested he was not familiar with statements from captain Stokes regarding the dressing room not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in multiple conversations following his team's loss in the second match of the Ashes against the Australians previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where England now face a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had allowed his sentiment to "drift around" within the playing group.
"I've done the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," said the England leader.
But, following Crawley scored 85 on the fourth day in Adelaide, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I wasn't actively searching for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with a pinch of salt," he added.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "weak men" observation subsequent to England were beaten in Brisbane to go two matches behind.
The England squad afterwards went on a holiday to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and the upcoming matches.
Before the Adelaide contest, he revealed his team had held "honest" conversations and he had asked them to "show a bit of dog" in their effort to stay in contention in the Ashes battle.
Nevertheless, the Kent batsman asserted the messaging from the captain and coach McCullum had remained in line with their prior tenure in leadership.
"It's been very positive, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is on maintaining positivity, play our way, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's dismissal on day four was part of a crucial triple-strike by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
The spinner's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Stokes himself – meant England six down for 207 in pursuit of a daunting target of 435.
This means, the home team need four wickets on Sunday's final day to secure an insurmountable 3-0 advantage after three matches played.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight away Ashes series loss.
This series is set to be decided in just eleven days of cricket – with England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the outcome of the Ashes urn been determined so quickly. Australia have also triumphed in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disappointing," said the batsman. "Our goal was to win the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll definitely view it like that," Crawley added.
"It's been difficult. Australia is a formidable team. It was inevitably tough coming here to face them. They entered as the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Pope's Place In Question
Although Crawley's innings in Adelaide likely secures doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope looks under immense pressure for his position in the fourth Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman was out for 17 runs in the team's second innings on Saturday, adding to his poor record against the old enemy.
In sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has failed to score a fifty and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other England player in over a century – Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
However, the opener insisted any notion his teammate is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – meaning the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know of his considerable talent," said Crawley. "He has had a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played several excellent innings. This is talk externally. There is no discussion like that on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley finished.
