Published 2nd Oct 2023, 22:00 BST

The stand-off thinks it could be feisty in Paris with so much on the line and expects verbals from rival 10 Johnny Sexton and "handbags" from Irish forward Peter O'Mahony as both sides seek an edge.

Scotland need to win and deny Ireland a bonus point to pip them for a place in the quarter-finals and Russell has warned his team not fixate on opponents they haven't beaten since 2017. The fly-half felt he was "overfocused" for Scotland's World Cup opener which they lost to South Africa and feels he and the team would benefit from a more relaxed approach against Ireland.

"I wouldn’t say I get nervous," said Russell. "I know the enormity of the game and know there is more pressure and more on the line, but that just makes me think I’ve got to have everything right. Against South Africa I went the other way and was probably over-focused. I’m trying to find a balance this week, but I wouldn’t say that’s nerves. I’ll be pretty relaxed going into the game. We’ve got to be clear in our roles and what we have to achieve. We’ve done all the work, it’s just about going out there, enjoying yourself and executing.

Scotland talisman Finn Russell is excited by the prospect of taking on Ireland in Paris.

"It’s a massive occasion, the chance to show how good we can be as a team and as players. It’s the biggest stage in the world, so having a bit of swagger can be a good thing."

Scotland, who have bounced back with wins over Tonga and Romania, found themselves smothered by South Africa in the 18-3 defeat in Marseille last month. The speed of the Springboks defence limited Scotland's attacking opportunities and Russell feels he may have been guilty of overthinking it.

"I thought a lot about their blitz defence and what was going to come," he said. "I was almost looking more at their defence than what we could do in attack. This week it’s more about focusing on us, what we can do to put them under pressure and score points.

"Of course we will look at the Irish defence and attack but I’ll be more chatting to the boys outside me about what we are going to do, instead of thinking of what their defence will do to us. It’s about going after them, taking them on and having the confidence to do that."

Scotland turned on the afterburners against Romania, recording an 84-0 success.

The South Africa match marked the first time in almost three years that Scotland had failed to score a try. They rediscovered their mojo in the next two Pool B games, albeit against lesser opposition, scoring seven tries in the 45-17 win over Tonga and 12 in the 84-0 thrashing of Romania. Playing against Ireland, the No 1 ranked team in the world, is a huge step up in class and Russell expects them to use everything in their power to gain an advantage. He will be up against Sexton but thinks it would be a mistake to dwell too much on the veteran fly-half.

"I wouldn’t say we need to go over the top and put him off his stride or take him out," said Russell. "We just need to be aware of what he can do and how he can control the game. If we go all out to shut him down, it creates space elsewhere which is probably what they want. We’ve got a great defence so we just need to stick to our system, have confidence in each other and keep doing what we have been doing.

"There might be some mouthing off here and there, maybe some words exchanged, but I wouldn’t expect anything else. Words from him, not from me. Never from me! That’s just how it is. In these sorts of games you do anything you can to get one up on your opposite man or the opposition team. If we’ve got the momentum, you might get someone like Peter O’Mahony trying to start some kind of handbags, or it might be me trying a chip over the top or a crazy offload that just changes the picture."

Russell, who played in Scotland's last win over Ireland six years ago, said he was relishing the chance to return to Paris where he spent the last five years playing his club rugby for Racing 92. The 31-year-old, who will move to Bath next season, is a big occasion player and the chance to be on centre stage at a sold-out Stade de France on Saturday night is one he intends to seize with both hands.

"These are the games why you play rugby,” said Russell. “To play at the highest level with everything on the line. For both teams it’s all or nothing. I know we’ve got to beat Ireland by eight points for us to qualify, but there’s always a chance of things happening."

Qualification, said Russell, "would mean the world to us all". The 74-times capped stand-off was part of the Scotland side that suffered an agonising last-gasp defeat by Australia in the 2015 World Cup quarter-final and rates this Ireland match as the biggest he's played since.

It's not always been plain sailing between Russell and Gregor Townsend over the years but the player said his relationship with the head coach was currently in a good place. "Yes, it's been good,” the stand-off added. “I think that's all behind us now, thankfully. That's been 11 years I've worked with Gregor now so to have a couple of bumps in the road is not that bad. That's all behind us. We're both on the same page, as we have been all summer, and throughout the Six Nations. It's just about making sure we continue on this journey we're on and try to get the win at the weekend."

Rugby World Cup: Finn Russell tells Scotland to play with swagger as he anticipates Irish verbals and tricks