Cheering is an essential part of any sporting event. It pumps up the players, gives spectators an outlet to actively participate and adds exponentially to the fun of the game. But for Northeastern sports fans, limits on cheering are headed their way.

Athletics Director Peter Roby aims to put an end to cheering against other teams with his “Positively Northeastern” initiative, which would ban all forms of “inappropriate” chants, including the DogHouse favorite for hockey, “Sieve! You suck!” Those participating in such cheers will be ejected from the game, Roby said. He may have the right idea when it comes to a stance on vulgarity, but cheering against other teams, as much a part of hockey games as ice, should be allowed to stay.

Positivity is a good thing, and no one can blame Roby for attempting to remind fans that cheering for our own hockey team is good. But Roby gets it wrong by assuming that all cheers against the other team are mean-spirited, and that Northeastern isn’t going to get the same treatment when it travels. By deriding the opposition’s goalie, we are attempting to level the playing field for Northeastern. No one wants to hear swearing at our games, but yelling “Sieve!” at the opposition’s goalie isn’t swearing; it’s clever. The DogHouse should, at the very least, get credit for using it.

Roby seems to forget that the audience plays a part in the game too, and its job is to cheer on and deride the other team. It’s the same across all sports, in all leagues, and this is one instance where Northeastern doesn’t need to be the exception. There are lines that shouldn’t be crossed (look no further than a Northeastern student’s callous and admonishable remarks regarding the off-campus Boston University housing fires that led to two students’ deaths at a BU and Northeastern hockey game last spring), and perhaps some regulation is good. After all, in the heat of an intense game, anything can come out of a person’s mouth. It couldn’t hurt to remind students that the matches are, after all, only games.

Since Roby promises to eject those chanting against the opposition, is the entire DogHouse really going to be ejected for shouting “Sieve!” during the hockey game? The group is a vital part of these matches, and by ejecting them, Roby would be doing far more harm to our team than the good he intends to cause with his initiative. The DogHouse should not swear or be mean to the other team, but “sieve” is virtually harmless, and goes a long way toward rousing the spirit of both the hockey team and its fans.

Putting a blanket on all remarks against other teams is excessive. Shouting for our team and against another is part of the game. We do not want Northeastern to look cruel or insensitive, but cheering is a part of sports that cannot be extricated, and we should not try to. Booing at another team is all part of the fun, and we fully expect Northeastern to get the same treatment we give other teams when they are on the road.

We cannot approve of vulgar cheers aimed at the opposition, and we urge Northeastern fans not the cross the line. But if the Athletics Department is not careful, the students could next be chanting, “Roby! You suck!”