Donnie will be making only his sixth appearance of the season after recovering from a knee injury that kept him out for over a year.
"The first couple of games back from that long lay-off, you are just trying to get the basics right but I felt on Sunday that captaincy helped my game," Donnie told The Times.
"I am a reasonably vocal guy anyway and the responsibility and honour seemed to help. I have been following what the other guys have been doing and I remember Jason (White) saying when he got the captaincy that he would go out and try to lead by example and he has certainly done that. That is something I will certainly aspire to emulate.
Glasgow must win to keep alive their hopes of a Heineken Cup place for next season.
"The Heineken Cup is very important, everyone is aware that we still have a chance," Donnie said. "All we can do is concentrate on our bit and try to put together a performance. We were disappointed with the attack last week. If we can get the same commitment and passion in defence and then add something to it, we should be in good shape."