Scotland captain Stuart Hogg is becoming “hacked off” by coverage of his side’s Six Nations finale in Paris.

But a Scottish victory by at least eight, while denying France a bonus point, would earn the visitors a best-ever finish of second place.

“A lot has been said that’s beginning to hack me off,” Hogg said.

“The fact that they’ve got to get 21 points. We read a quote from one of their players saying that they’ve got a trophy to win. As a proud Scotsman, that hurt me a lot.

“We win by eight points, and we finish the highest we’ve ever finished in a Six Nations. That’s the motivation for us. It’s going to be one hell of a challenge, an open game of rugby, and we’re really, really excited for it.”

The third-round fixture had been originally scheduled for 28 February, but was postponed due to a Covid-19 outbreak in the French camp amid allegations of protocol breaches.

As Friday’s Test takes place outside of designated international windows, the release of Gregor Townsend’s England-based players had to be negotiated.

A deal was struck between Scottish Rugby, the Six Nations and England’s Premiership Rugby, but the number of players available has been capped at five, meaning Saracens duo Sean Maitland and Duncan Taylor, and Bath prop Jamie Bhatti, miss out.

“The main thing for us is that we put the squad first,” Hogg added. “I could see how much it meant to Sean Maitland, the fact that he wasn’t going to be included. That hurt him a lot.

“Duncan Taylor, Jamie Bhatti, boys who have had a massive impact on what we’ve done in training and in games over the last few weeks. We’re going out there tomorrow to put in a performance that they’d be proud of, that they’ve put massive efforts into.”

The British and Irish Lions full-back skirted a “headline question” on the fairness of such a deal, but said his players were itching to end a turbulent campaign on a high.

Scotland smashed a 38-year Twickenham hoodoo, beating England in the opening round, before agonising home losses to Wales and Ireland, and a Murrayfield shellacking of Italy last Saturday.

“The ongoing thing is that a lot of stuff is written about us that often concentrates on opposition rather than ourselves,” the 28-year-old said. “We will just quietly go about our work in the right way and let our rugby do the talking.

“I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve done so far in this Six Nations. Obviously it’s not been perfect by any means but we’ve got a chance to finish on a very good note, and celebrate.

“It’s been a good time in camp, a lot of sacrifices we’ve had to make in terms of staying away from home for long periods, a lot of travel for exile boys, a lot of hard work and effort has gone in. We want to finish off on a great note and celebrate each other’s company.”