VETERAN Glasgow Warriors lock Richie Gray who is preparing to win his 72nd cap this weekend, admits he cannot recall Scotland arriving in the French capital with such optimism.

“Yeah, we’ve certainly got an internal belief,” he said. “I think it’s always been there in the last couple of years but thankfully now that’s been able to transfer onto the pitch, certainly in the first couple of games.

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“But this is a massive challenge and we’re under no illusions about how big a game this is and how difficult a challenge it will be, so let’s see where we’re at on Sunday after the final whistle.

“We have all been involved in Scottish sport for a long time, so let’s just take it one game at a time.

“It is a big game tomorrow and we look forward to it and everybody at home is looking forward to it.

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“We are going up against a very good French side that is second in the world at the moment and won the tournament last year.

“This is their first game at home so all the crowd will be behind them.

“Technically they are a very good team and will have all their fans behind them. It will be a tough day, a very physical day, up front from a forwards point of view.”