Southwell column on Delia Smith and Michael Wynn Jones exit

They were not perfect. They did not get every decision right. They did oversee failures on the pitch. In their reflections, they would likely be the first to admit it was a period of highs, lows and everything in between. 

As they and City themselves have been keen to stress - this is not goodbye. Smith and Wynn Jones will still be regulars at Carrow Road and will constantly be seen around the club as life presidents. 

The sadness is that football is no longer in a world to realistically support two fans hungry to bring success to their club but with limited resources. 

Smith and Wynn Jones helped Norwich swim against the ever-increasing tide within the game for a period. When they beat Manchester City in 2019, it was a moment that felt like that dream was a real possibility. 

It was the dream of football's purism. That it was competition and not wealth that dictated matches. That trophies could be won, promotions achieved and dreams realised without the need for a distant sugar daddy. 

Maybe that is romanticism. Maybe it is far-fetched. But, for a long time, Smith and Wynn Jones made it feel possible. 

Amid all the dark money swirling into the game and proliferation of owners with serious moral questions marks against their name, Smith and Wynn Jones remained and helped City get to the top table despite their lack of wealth relative to football. 

That was a source of great pride for so many supporters for so long. Despite the game being pushed away from fans, Norwich remained present in the community and had accessible and accountable majority shareholders. 

Many clubs would give anything to have the record of promotions and Premier League campaigns that Norwich have, loosely, enjoyed under Smith and Wynn Jones. Many have gambled their futures trying to achieve it. 

Norwich never did that. Their success was organic and often reliant on strategy. To have punched above their weight for so long is a real success. 

So many individuals have personal stories of meeting Smith and Wynn Jones, which tells a story within itself. Even now, the pair are seen in the Lion and Castle, which they paid to have built with £1m of their personal cash, to engage and converse with supporters. 

Both have done plenty, be it sending heartfelt messages at times of great difficulty to some supporters or spending time in their company. The fact most City fans can recall a personal anecdote or meeting speaks about their visibility over the last 28 years. Not many supporters have that in common with Norwich fans. 

Michael Wynn Jones and Delia Smith helped Norwich City punch above their weight. (Image: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd) It hasn't been a personal conquest to amplify their personal brand or a desire to raise their respective profiles; it's been about saving their club and wanting to watch it grow and prosper. 

They've never made it about themselves. They have sought to empower those who work for the club and let them shine - that is why so many former managers and head coaches, even those who didn't enjoy success or were sacked, are quick to speak glowingly about the impact they've had and the support they've received. 

That willingness to hand power to individuals has been one of their biggest strengths but also biggest weaknesses at points - but, at large, they've been receptive to moving with the times, which is intrinsic to enjoying a sustained period in modern football and often accepted they don't hold all the answers. 

Smith and Wynn Jones played a key role in the club's restructuring in 2017, which ushered in Stuart Webber and Daniel Farke. They were bold in changing the board of directors after relegation to League One in 2009 - both were impactful moments in recent City history. 

Few achieve such longevity in football. Mark Attanasio's mission is to build upon the foundations he's been left. 

Alongside that task, his Norfolk FB Holdings group will need to retain the sense of community and bond with the support base that Smith and Wynn Jones have spent years successfully carving, even though they will not be present in Norfolk for the majority of the campaign. 

He has developed that well at the Milwaukee Brewers, and that was a core reason why Smith and Wynn Jones were willing to hand over the mantle to his group. 

Mark Attanasio has succeeded Delia Smith and Michael Wynn Jones as majority shareholder. (Image: Adam Harvey/Newsquest)

That relationship with supporters will need to be deeper than just dollar bills, it is about feeling, identity, and the values that connect supporters to the club. 

The fact that Smith and Wynn Jones, who have placed such a high bar against potential investors, have been willing to pass the club over speaks volumes about Attanasio's character and vision for the club. 

It will not be a rapid departure from what has gone before, but it will be one that, with more investment and support, will hopefully yield success and allow Norwich to have a higher ceiling. In recent Premier League crusades, that lack of financial muscle has made competing, let alone survival, impossible. 

As the adage goes - 'if you love something, let it go'. It is now the right time for Smith and Wynn Jones to release the reins. 

In these columns, I always try to stray away from using 'I'. But given the magnitude of the occasions, I will drop that self-imposed rule briefly on this occasion. 

I haven't known Norwich City without Delia Smith and Michael Wynn Jones at the helm. They have been the constant throughout my lifelong association with the club. 

When speaking to other football fans and revealing your club or when Norwich are brought into the conversation, they are often the first names mentioned. They've helped put City on the map. 

A change in ownership often occurs when the relationship between the club's top brass and its supporters is broken beyond repair. Those divorces are messy, ill-tempered and often irreparable. It usually involves conflict, protest, and financial disarray. That is not the case this time around. 

Delia Smith connected with Norwich City's supporters. (Image: Newsquest) Perhaps the fact that this is different for Smith and Wynn Jones perfectly sums them up - it has been about club first, self second, and characteristically modest. Football has moved on, and so must Norwich, but so much of what has made it the club it is comes from them. 

Attanasio's new era is one of excitement. Hopefully, Smith and Wynn Jones can return to the role of supporters and cheer on as Norwich chase progress under American rule.