On Wednesday my editor asked me a question: “Can you write an ‘I was there’ piece about the match?”

“Yeah, no problem” I replied, almost before he finished his sentence. In hindsight, I was a bit too keen. There was a problem.

It was the morning after the night before, my head was foggy and my voice was hoarse. I’d been out until the early hours celebrating one of the greatest results in Sutton United’s history, a 3-1 FA Cup win at AFC Wimbledon.

The current feel-good factor around the club is addictive, so when they Tweeted “Message from Dos [manager Paul Doswell] – everyone back to Gander Green Lane – bar open to celebrate” I had to go along. The trouble was, I didn’t want to leave. I just wanted to keep talking about the match. And what a match.

United’s grit, determination and never-say-die spirit was impressive. They refused to give up and, just when non-league teams are supposed to tire and succumb to the inevitable plucky defeat, they scored three wonderful goals.

I don't normally make a point of hugging strangers but when Sutton’s magic man Roarie Deacon struck a beauty into the top corner of the net to equalise, anyone on the terrace around me was fair game. Just as well no-one cared because it happened two more glorious times thanks to late goals from Max Biamou and Dan Fitchett.

It's been quite a ride for the U's ever since Doswell was appointed manager in 2008.

I'll be honest, I'd never heard of him. But nearly nine years on, his face is plastered across the sports pages of the national press and the World Wide Web.

Some of those images feature the Sutton boss taking a sly puff on his e-cigarette during the first encounter with the Dons, leading to comparisons with legendary former United manager Barrie Williams who nervously smoked a pipe during the famous FA Cup win over Coventry in 1989.

Williams has proved a hard act to follow with some of his successors managing only fleeting, if not insignificant, honours for the U's.

When Doswell was handed the task of rebuilding the club in 2008, Sutton were at a low ebb.

They had just finished bottom of the Conference South by an impressive 10 point margin and were relegated to their familiar old stomping ground of the Isthmian League just as AFC Wimbledon went in the opposite direction.

As an aside, I always wondered how things would pan out if Sutton ever played the Dons in competitive matches. Well, now I know. We'd do very well, thanks very much.

Anyway, one of the rare bright spots of that abysmal relegation season was a 3-2 away win at Bath City which stopped a run of nine consecutive defeats in all competitions.

The biggest crowd for a home game all season was 702 against Bromley and the club's Gander Green Lane home reflected the state of the team, it was shabby and in dire need of some TLC.

But, by May 2008 and following a string of uninspiring managerial appointments, something had to happen and thankfully the board took a punt on someone with no previous connection to the club and most importantly, someone with an infectious positive attitude.

Doswell’s first competitive game in charge was a modest affair, a 1-1 draw at Harlow Town on August 16 in front of a crowd of 376.

The U's would go on to do battle with the likes of Heybridge Swifts, Ashford Town (Middlesex) and Carshalton Athletic before securing an impressive fifth-place finish.

Since then, along with a little help from his friends – most noticeably chairman Bruce Elliott and his band of merry board members - the United boss has gone on to write a whole new glorious chapter in the club’s history, and thank goodness for that, because there’s only so long you can keep crowing about the Coventry victory, as great as it was.

The list of milestones and achievements the club has enjoyed in Doswell’s time at Gander Green Lane makes for pleasurable reading:

- Five appearances in the first round proper or beyond of the FA Cup with two victories over Football League opponents.

- Four appearances in the play-offs.

- Two league titles - the second of which was clinched in stunning fashion last season after an unbelievable 26 game unbeaten run.

A crowd of 3,142 witnessed the crucial victory over fellow title contenders Ebbsfleet United last April – the biggest attendance at Gander Green Lane for a league match for more than 40 years.

In the summer of 2015 the club installed a state-of-the-art 3G surface making it an important hub for the community groups who use it on a daily basis.

The club also entered into agreements with Sutton Common Rovers and AFC Wimbledon Ladies to share the facility, and last summer the venue was selected to host the England C match with Slovakia U21s.

This season alone Sutton are not only rubbing shoulders with but are beating the likes of Lincoln, Tranmere, Macclesfield, Wrexham and Torquay – a far cry from those early days under Doswell in the Ryman League.

The club has also hosted Football Focus, BBC’s FA Cup draw preview show and been mentioned in Parliament during Prime Minister’s Questions.

And we can't forget season ticket sales. They've gone up from 120 two seasons ago, to an incredible 1,200 at the last count. 

All of this doesn’t so much hint at a club on the up, it shouts it out, loud and clear.

The most recent crop of players to don the famous amber and chocolate shirt have truly done the club proud.

The likes of Craig Eastmond, Maxime Biamou, Ross Worner, Nicky Bailey and Roarie Deacon have quite rightly garnered many admirers and plaudits for their consistently fine performances in Sutton’s colours.

Other players like Tom Bolarinwa, Dan Wishart and Ross Stearn and have also played vital roles before securing moves to clubs with lofty ambitions.

Sutton United does not stand in the way of any player looking to better themselves, and the current squad will be fully aware they’ll be in the shop window against Leeds United on January 29 in front of the BT Sport cameras.

In my view, there can be no greater acknowledgment of his hard work and dedication than to say that the sides that Dos assembled over the past two seasons are quite simply the best in the club's history, even surpassing the great teams of the 1960s and '80s.

If anyone is in any doubt then they need only take a look at the excellent pictures plastered on the walls in and around the clubhouse.

During the celebrations after Tuesday's win there's was much debate between supporters as to where the Wimbledon victory stands in our list of giantkillings.

For what it's worth, I think it ranks behind Coventry. Not only was it a gutsy performance and an incredible late turnaround, but to pull off such a stunning victory with such a big pay day riding on the outcome is an achievement everyone involved can quite rightly be proud of and will talk about for years to come.

After our great Cup upset of 1989, I read the report and reaction on Ceefax (the internet of its day) but had to endure an agonsing wait for the following day's papers to hit the newsstands. It seemed to take forever.

These days, thanks to the internet, reaction is instant and the spotlight the club is under has never been brighter.

There have been countless tweets, Facebook posts, articles, TV news features and conversations about the club they are literally the talk of the town. It’s great.

The first Wimbledon game was beamed live across the globe (except the UK funnily enough). I was one of those to watch it on the box, sipping a hot morning coffee while on holiday in freezing cold of Chicago.

Former Sutton and Wimbledon favourite Efan Ekoku was the co-commentator on Fox Sports 1 and ex-USA internationals Brad Friedel and Alexei Lalas spoke about the danger Matt Tubbs posed to his old team. 

It was all a bit surreal. I had to rub my eyes to make sure I wasn't dreaming. 

Well, make no mistake about it, Sutton United are living the dream once again.

They're back in the top flight of non-league football and in the fourth round of the FA Cup for the third time in their history. 

This may be a slightly self-indulgent piece, but who cares? You’ve got to enjoy the good times while you can and appreciate what you’ve got, when you’ve got it.

Bring on Leeds United, bring on more welcome exposure for this great club and bring on more good times under Paul Doswell.

I’ll drink to that.