Last weekend saw one of the biggest shocks in sport. Ever.

And I don’t mean Cowdenbeath beating high-flying Forfar in National League One.

The Rugby World Cup kicked off on Friday with hosts England beating Fiji at Twickenham as expected.

However, on Saturday what appeared to be a straightforward tournament opener for double world champions South Africa was anything but.

The ‘Brave Blossoms’ of Japan snatched an inspired and historic injury-time victory to leave the ’Boks stunned and their fans speechless.

Some pundits have said it is the single biggest event in rugby since 1823 when William Webb Ellis first picked up a football at Rugby School and ran with it.

For me it shows how anything is possible no matter the odds – as long as you have the self-belief and the determination to achieve.

Sticking with sporting analogies, the Murray brothers were a fine example of the never-say-die spirit in their heroic Davis Cup doubles victory over Australia on Saturday, capped off by Andy’s delivery of Great Britain’s first final place in 37 years on Sunday.

When you look at the statistics, Australia have appeared in nearly three times as many finals as Great Britain so to be on the brink of winning the cup is a phenomenal achievement (Great Britain last won the Davis Cup in 1936!) It makes me think of the underdog – the David against Goliath – the small guy punching above his weight and winning.

That speaks volumes for all that we do here in Inverclyde.

We are a small council when you think about it and a small corner of the world where most people know everybody else and we thrive on our sense of community and watching out for each other.

That sense of community helps us to provide our children with first class education, our elderly with help and support to live rewarding and enriching lives in their own homes and a real feeling of belonging to something special. We should all take pride in where we are from and have the confidence to know that we can tackle any eventuality that life throws at us both good and bad.

Speaking of tackle – I would like to wish Scotland all the best for their first outing of the Rugby World Cup this afternoon – against Japan! Vern Cotter’s troops have won all four of their previous meetings – the most recent a 42-17 victory at Murrayfield.

But now it is the Scots who are the underdogs with Japan leapfrogging them in the official world rankings. So, COME ON SCOTLAND!