im running a 1×9 set up, thinking of a dura ace ss road mech if i cant get hold of a sram short mech for a decent price, I have a 32 front ring and a 11-34 cassette, will the short road mechs work with this?

Nope, a road mech (SS) will only cope with max rear cassette size of 28T, you could run a road GS cage mech but then you might as well buy a dedicated MTB one then.

might struggle to get the larger rear cogs but it would "work" as a bodge.

SS rear mechs are really only designed to go up to 28 tooth. You might get away with 30, but i think 34 might be pushing it.

Worth a try though. Let us know if it works…. 🙂

Josh…

it won't work